Web guiding system and method

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for guiding one or more web components in connection with a web converting manufacturing process such as that used for manufacturing disposable absorbent garments. Some of the disclosed embodiments include relating inspection data, such as product (or process) attribute data, to data from other manufacturing-related systems. Also disclosed are systems and methods for linking product (or process) attribute data obtained during the manufacturing process with one or more data sources including raw material data, process setting data, product quality data, and/or productivity data. Also disclosed are systems and methods for identifying manufacturing set point changes and automatically implementing such changes and automated web steering changes based on data from one or more inspection systems.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The invention of the present application is related to and claimspriority to provisional U.S. patent application Ser. No. 60/401,805,entitled INFORMATION EXCHANGE, filed on Aug. 7, 2002, the entiredisclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to systems and methodsassociated with inspecting composite products produced using one or moreweb converting manufacturing processes. More particularly, the inventionrelates to systems and methods for guiding one or more webs of componentmaterials used in a web converting manufacturing process producing acomposite product.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Articles such as disposable absorbent garments have numerousapplications including diapers, training pants, feminine care products,and adult incontinence products. A typical disposable absorbent garmentis formed as a composite structure including an absorbent assemblydisposed between a liquid permeable bodyside liner and a liquidimpermeable outer cover. These components can be combined with othermaterials and features such as elastic materials and containmentstructures to form a product which is specifically suited to itsintended purposes. A number of such garments include fasteningcomponents which are intended to be connected together (e.g.,pre-fastened) during manufacture of the garment so that the product ispackaged in its fully assembled form.

For example, one such pre-fastened garment includes child's trainingpants, which have a central absorbent chassis and front and back sidepanels extending laterally out from the chassis adjacent longitudinallyopposite ends thereof. A portion of each of the front and back sidepanels has a respective fastening component disposed thereon. Duringmanufacture of the training pants, the central absorbent chassis isinitially formed generally flat and then folded over so that the frontand back side panels face each other. The respective fasteningcomponents of the front and back side panels are then aligned andconnected together to define an engagement seam. Upon securing the frontand back side panel fastening components together, the pre-fastened pairof training pants is in its fully assembled three-dimensional formhaving an interior space bounded in part by the engagement seam.

For a variety of purposes, including quality control, process control,material control, and so on, it is often desirable to monitor thepresence of and/or interrelationships between one or more elements of adisposable absorbent garment. For instance, elements such as outercovers, liners, absorbent pads, side panels, elastic components,fastener components, etc. must be positioned or aligned with respect toeach other and/or to other components as desired or otherwise intendedin order to produce an acceptable product. Accordingly, inspectionsystems are commonly used to detect the presence and/or relativepositions of such components during manufacturing. If an inspectionsystem determines that one or more components are out of position andthus do not properly register with other components, the inspectionsystem typically outputs one or more signals indicating that certainarticles should be culled and discarded, that the process should beadjusted so as to bring out-of-position components into proper position,that the process should be adjusted so that subsequent components arebrought into proper registration with one another, and so on.

One such registration inspection system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.5,359,525, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.As described therein, registration inspection of a composite productduring fabrication is accomplished by producing an image of the articleand then analyzing the image to detect the relative positions of one ormore components. The detected positions are then compared to desiredpositions to thereby determine whether one or more components areimproperly positioned. Such registration inspection systems employconventional video cameras for capturing visible, ultraviolet, x-ray,and infrared light reflected by and/or transmitted through components ofthe product in order to produce still video images of such components.Thus, after producing a video image of a composite article and itsseveral components, the image can be analyzed to determine whether thecomponents are properly positioned and registered with one another.

Although highly useful for many applications, there is a need for ahigher order level of inspection and control that provides advantageswith respect to the inspection, analysis and control of high speed webconverting processes associated with manufacturing products having tightquality tolerances. Such products include, for example, certain productshaving engagement seams formed by connecting two elements together suchthat the engagement seam is essentially two layers. For example,engagement seams formed by connected side panels of the training pantsdescribed previously has heretofore entailed connecting the side panelsin face-to-face relationships with outer edges of the side panelsaligned with each other. To inspect such an engagement seam, it wasnecessary only to inspect the exposed outer edges of the side panels sothat there was no need to actually capture an image of any underlyingelements or edges of the training pants. More recent engagement seams,however, are formed by connecting the side panels in overlappingrelationship so that the outer edge of one side panel underlies theother side panel at the engagement seam. Still referring to theengagement seam example, arriving at a finished state of properlyengaged side seams requires a precise final positioning of the edges ofthe fastening system components on the side panels. Such a level ofcontrol can be accomplished through a cascaded process control ofmultiple (e.g., up to seven in one example) dependent productgeometrical relationships that can be affected by material, processsettings, process set points, transient conditions, and so on.

It is desirable to capture an image of the underlying panel at theengagement seam to determine the position and relative alignment of theouter edge of the underlying panel. Because the light emitting sourceand camera of the inspection system described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,359,525are positioned exterior of the inspected component, it is difficult toinspect the outer edge of an underlying panel of the more recentengagement seams once the panels are connected. For example, it isdifficult to lay the engagement seam flat over the light emitting sourceof the disclosed inspection system, thereby increasing the risk that theimage captured by the camera will appear fuzzy. Moreover, it isdifficult for the visible or ultraviolet light to pass through orreflect from the underlying layer of the multiple layers present at suchan engagement seam.

Moreover, prior art systems for inspecting composite articles, such as,for example, disposable absorbent garments, do not integrate and relatedata from multiple inspection stations to prioritize necessary ordesirable automatic control actions, trouble-shootingactions/recommendations, operator alarming, and so on.

Further, prior art systems for inspecting composite articles, such asdisposable absorbent garments, did not integrate and relateinformation/data from multiple inspections systems with information fromother information systems associated with a manufacturing process. Forexample, database systems have been employed for collectingwaste/delay/productivity information, raw material information, manuallyentered quality information (e.g., from manual inspections of selecteditems), and machine process information. In fabricating articles such asdiapers and training pants, such information includes productivityassociated with a particular production run, various attributes of theraw materials used, process control settings (e.g., vacuum settings,machine set points, conveyor steering commands, and so on), and thelike. Such prior art information, however, has not been correlated toinspection information so that improvements can be made, for example, tofurther reduce cost and waste, and to increase productivity and quality.

Improvements are also desired with respect to information systemsassociated with web converting processes. For example, web convertingmanufacturing processes often use multiple station devices, with eachstation performing a substantially similar function. Prior artinformation systems do not adequately isolate and exploit inspectiondata associated with a particular station of such multiple stationdevices. It has been known to use simple photoeye detectors to detectwhether a side panel placed by a multiple station device was present onthe absorbent article constructed using that device. Identifying andexploiting additional aspects of multiple station devices, however, isdesirable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one form, the invention is a web guiding system for use in connectionwith a continuous production line producing a composite web from firstand second web components, the first web component being supplied on afirst feed system and the second web component being supplied on asecond feed system, the composite web being supplied to a third feedsystem after a forming process. A first web guide selectively adjusts aposition of the first web component on the first feed system prior tothe forming process. A vision inspection system periodically captures animage of the composite web and detects in the captured image a placementof the first web component relative to the second web component. Thevision inspection system provides to a communication network aninspection parameter indicative of the detected placement. Aninformation exchange system obtains via the communication network aplurality of inspection parameters, each associated with one of aplurality of captured images of the composite web. The informationexchange system determines a mathematical characteristic of the obtainedplurality of inspection parameters and providing the mathematicalcharacteristic. A drive system is associated with the first web guide.The drive system is responsive to the provided mathematicalcharacteristic for selectively causing the first web guide to adjust theposition of the first web component on the first feed system.

In another form, the invention comprises a web guiding method, suitablefor use in connection with a production line producing a composite webformed from a first web component combined with a second web component,the first web component being supplied on a first feed system and thesecond web component being supplied on a second feed system, thecomposite web being supplied on a third feed system after a compositionprocess for combining the first and second web components. The methodcomprises:

controlling with a first web guide a position of the first web componenton the first feed system to maintain the first web componentsubstantially at a desired position on the first feed system;

controlling with a second web guide a position of the second webcomponent on the second feed system to maintain the second web componentsubstantially at a desired position on the second feed system;

capturing an image of the composite web formed from the first and secondweb components;

detecting in the captured image a placement of the first web componentrelative to the second web component;

providing an inspection parameter indicative of the detected relativeplacement;

obtaining a plurality of inspection parameters, each associated with oneof a plurality of captured images of the composite web;

determining a mathematical characteristic of the obtained plurality ofinspection parameters;

comparing the determined mathematical characteristic to a target; and

selectively adjusting a position of the first web guide as a function ofa difference between the mathematical characteristic and the target.

Definitions

Within the context of this specification, each term or phrase below willinclude, but will not be considered necessarily limited to, thefollowing meaning or meanings.

“Bonded” comprises the joining, adhering, connecting, attaching, or thelike, of two elements. Two elements will be considered to be bondedtogether when they are bonded directly to one another or indirectly toone another, such as when each is directly bonded to intermediateelements.

“Connected” comprises the joining, adhering, bonding, attaching, or thelike, of two elements. Two elements will be considered to be connectedtogether when they are connected directly to one another or indirectlyto one another, such as when each is directly connected to intermediateelements.

“Culled” articles includes articles that are discarded during themanufacturing process, prior to being packaged. For example, an articlemay be culled if an inspector identifies an unacceptable nonconformingcharacteristic. An article may be culled before its construction hasbeen completed.

“Disposable” comprises articles which are designed to be discarded aftera limited use rather than being laundered or otherwise restored forreuse.

“Disposed,” “disposed on,” and variations thereof are intended toinclude that one element can be integral with another element, or thatone element can be a separate structure bonded to or placed with orplaced near another element.

“Elastic,” “elasticized” and “elasticity” include that property of amaterial or composite by virtue of which it tends to recover itsoriginal size and shape after removal of a force causing a deformation.

“Elastomeric” comprises a material or composite which can be elongatedby at least 25 percent of its relaxed length and which will recover,upon release of the applied force, at least 10 percent of itselongation. It is generally preferred that the elastomeric material orcomposite be capable of being elongated by at least 100 percent, morepreferably by at least 300 percent, of its relaxed length and recover,upon release of an applied force, at least 50 percent of its elongation.

“Endseal” is an edge of two or more panels that are joined together byadhesive or other means. In the context of an absorbent article, a frontend seal includes a front distal edge of an absorbent panel and a distaledge of a right front elastic side panel and/or a front distal edge ofan absorbent panel and a distal edge of a left front elastic side panel.In the context of an absorbent article, a rear end seal includes a reardistal edge of an absorbent panel and a distal edge of a right rearelastic side panel and/or a rear distal edge of an absorbent panel and adistal edge of a left rear elastic side panel.

“Fabrics” is used to include all of the woven, knitted and nonwovenfibrous webs.

“Flexible” comprises materials which are compliant and which willreadily conform to the general shape and contours of the wearer's body.

“Force” includes a physical influence exerted by one body on anotherwhich produces acceleration of bodies that are free to move anddeformation of bodies that are not free to move. Force is expressed ingrams per unit area.

“Graphic” comprises any design, pattern, or the like that is visible onan absorbent article.

“Hydrophilic” comprises fibers or the surfaces of fibers which arewetted by the aqueous liquids in contact with the fibers. The degree ofwetting of the materials can, in turn, be described in terms of thecontact angles and the surface tensions of the liquids and materialsinvolved. Equipment and techniques suitable for measuring thewettability of particular fiber materials or blends of fiber materialscan be provided by a Cahn SFA-222 Surface Force Analyzer System, or asubstantially equivalent system. When measured with this system, fibershaving contact angles less than 90° are designated “wettable” orhydrophilic, while fibers having contact angles greater than 90° aredesignated “nonwettable” or hydrophobic.

“Integral” comprises various portions of a single unitary element ratherthan separate structures bonded to or placed with or placed near oneanother.

“Inward” and “outward” comprise positions relative to the center of anabsorbent article, and particularly transversely and/or longitudinallycloser to or away from the longitudinal and transverse center of theabsorbent article.

“Layer” when used in the singular can have the dual meaning of a singleelement or a plurality of elements.

“Liquid impermeable”, when used in describing a layer or multi-layerlaminate, includes that a liquid, such as urine, will not pass throughthe layer or laminate, under ordinary use conditions, in a directiongenerally perpendicular to the plane of the layer or laminate at thepoint of liquid contact. Liquid, or urine, may spread or be transportedparallel to the plane of the liquid impermeable layer or laminate, butthis is not considered to be within the meaning of “liquid impermeable”when used herein.

“Longitudinal” and “transverse” comprise their customary meaning. Thelongitudinal axis lies in the plane of the garment and is generallyparallel to a vertical plane that bisects a standing wearer into leftand right body halves when the article is worn. The transverse axis liesin the plane of the article generally perpendicular to the longitudinalaxis. The garment as illustrated is longer in the longitudinal directionthan in the transverse direction.

“Mathematical characteristic” includes determinations made bymathematical manipulation, as well as statistical determinations,manipulations and assessments of variability of data sets such as, forexample, a range or indication of a range of values within a data set, avariance, or a coefficient of variance.

“Member” when used in the singular can comprise the dual meaning of asingle element or a plurality of elements.

“Nonwoven” and “nonwoven web” comprise materials and webs of materialwhich are formed without the aid of a textile weaving or knittingprocess. “Operatively joined,” with reference to the attachment of anelastic member to another element, includes that the elastic member whenattached to or connected to the element, or treated with heat orchemicals, by stretching, or the like, gives the element elasticproperties; and with reference to the attachment of a non-elastic memberto another element, means that the member and element can be attached inany suitable manner that permits or allows them to perform the intendedor described function of the joinder. The joining, attaching, connectingor the like can be either directly, such as joining either memberdirectly to an element, or can be indirectly by means of another memberdisposed between the first member and the first element.

“Outer cover graphic” comprises a graphic that is directly visible uponinspection of the exterior surface of a garment, and for a refastenablegarment is in reference to inspection of the exterior surface of thegarment when the fastening system is engaged as it would be during use.

“Permanently bonded” comprises the joining, adhering, connecting,attaching, or the like, of two elements of an absorbent garment suchthat the elements tend to be and remain bonded during normal useconditions of the absorbent garment.

“Refastenable” comprises the property of two elements being capable ofreleasable attachment, separation, and subsequent releasablereattachment without substantial permanent deformation or rupture.

“Releasably attached,” “releasably engaged” and variations thereofcomprise two elements being connected or connectable such that theelements tend to remain connected absent a separation force applied toone or both of the elements, and the elements being capable ofseparation without substantial permanent deformation or rupture. Therequired separation force is typically beyond that encountered whilewearing the absorbent garment.

“Rupture” includes the breaking or tearing apart of a material; intensile testing, the term comprises the total separation of a materialinto two parts either all at once or in stages, or the development of ahole in some materials.

“Stretch bonded” comprises an elastic member being bonded to anothermember while the elastic member is extended at least about 25 percent ofits relaxed length. Desirably, the term “stretch bonded” comprises thesituation wherein the elastic member is extended at least about 100percent, and more desirably at least about 300 percent, of its relaxedlength when it is bonded to the other member.

“Stretch bonded laminate” comprises a composite material having at leasttwo layers in which one layer is a gatherable layer and the other layeris an elastic layer. The layers are joined together when the elasticlayer is in an extended condition so that upon relaxing the layers, thegatherable layer is gathered.

“Surface” includes any layer, film, woven, nonwoven, laminate,composite, or the like, whether pervious or impervious to air, gas,and/or liquids.

“Tension” includes a uniaxial force tending to cause the extension of abody or the balancing force within that body resisting the extension.

“Thermoplastic” describes a material that softens when exposed to heatand which substantially returns to a nonsoftened condition when cooledto room temperature.

These terms may be defined with additional language or by additionalexamples in the remaining portions of the specification, and alsoencompass their ordinary and customary meaning(s).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a child's training pants with a fasteningsystem of the training pants shown connected on one side of the trainingpants and disconnected on the other side of the training pants;

FIG. 2 is a bottom plan view of the training pants of FIG. 1 in anunfastened, stretched and laid flat condition to show an outer surfaceof the training pants which faces away from the wearer;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the training pants in its unfastened,stretched and laid flat condition to show an inner surface of thetraining pants which faces the wearer when the training pants are worn,with portions of the training pants being cut away to reveal underlyingfeatures;

FIG. 4A is a block diagram of an inspection system having an informationexchange;

FIG. 4B illustrates schematically one embodiment of a flow ofinformation to and from an information exchange;

FIGS. 5A and 5B are logic flow diagrams illustrating one method ofproviding real time quality, suitable for use in connection with aninspection system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 6 is a logic flow diagram of one method of using qualityinformation from a raw material database to adjust process settings,suitable for use in connection with an information system such as thatillustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 7 is a logic flow diagram illustrating one method of providing realtime registration set point control, suitable for use in connection withan information system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 8 is a logic flow diagram illustrating another method of providingreal time registration set point control, suitable for use in connectionwith an information system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration of one embodiment of a web guidingsystem, suitable for use in connection with an information system suchas that illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIGS. 10A–10D illustrate schematically a fastening system associatedwith the refastenable child's training pants illustrated in FIGS. 1–3;

FIG. 11 is a schematic illustration of another embodiment of a webguiding system, suitable for use in connection with an informationsystem such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 12 is a schematic representation of an exemplary automatedtrouble-shooting system, suitable for use in connection with aninformation system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIGS. 13A and 13B are logic flow diagrams illustrating one method ofproviding process information, suitable for use in connection with aninformation system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 14 is a logic flow diagram illustrating one method (indicatedgenerally by reference 1600) of providing an automated trouble-shootingcapability, suitable for use in connection with an information systemsuch as that illustrated in FIG. 4 or 12;

FIGS. 15–19 illustrate certain exemplary display information for displayon an operator interface associated with a manufacturing process;

FIG. 19A illustrates an exemplary display of full product inspectioninformation of a fastening system associated with a refastenable child'straining pants as displayed on an operator interface;

FIG. 20 illustrates in schematic form a system for tracking per stationinformation from a multiple station manufacturing device;

FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary display of certain per stationinformation for use in connection with a system such as that illustratedin FIG. 20;

FIG. 22 is a block diagram illustrative of one configuration of adatabase system suitable for use in mining data in connection with aninformation system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 23 is a logic flow diagram of a method for correlating product (orprocess) attribute information with other manufacturing relatedinformation for use in data mining applications in connection with aninformation system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The methods and apparatus of the present invention can be used to make avariety of articles such as disposable absorbent garments includingdiapers, training pants, feminine hygiene products, incontinenceproducts, other personal care or health care garments, swim pants,athletic clothing, pants and shorts, and the like. As an example, themethods and apparatus of the present invention can be used to makearticles in which at least two elements of the article are connectedtogether during the making thereof to assemble or “pre-fasten” thearticle. For ease of explanation, the methods and apparatus of thepresent invention are hereafter described in connection with makingpre-fastened child's training pants, generally indicated as 20 inFIG. 1. In particular, the methods and apparatus will be described interms of those for making pre-fastened disposable training pants asdescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/444,083 titled“Absorbent Articles With Refastenable Side Seams” and filed Nov. 22,1999 (corresponding to PCT application WO 00/37009 published Jun. 29,2000) by A. L. Fletcher et al., the disclosure of which is incorporatedherein by reference. Training pants 20 can also be constructed using themethods and apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,940,464 issued Jul.10, 1990 to Van Gompel et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,766,389 issued Jun.16, 1998 to Brandon et al.; the disclosures of which are alsoincorporated herein by reference.

With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to FIG. 1, thetraining pants 20 are illustrated in a partially fastened condition andcomprise an absorbent chassis 32 having a front waist region 22, a backwaist region 24, a crotch region 26 interconnecting the front and backwaist regions, an inner surface 28 which is configured to contact thewearer, and an outer surface 30 opposite the inner surface andconfigured to contact the wearer's clothing. With additional referenceto FIGS. 2 and 3, the absorbent chassis 32 also has a pair of laterallyopposite side edges 36 and a pair of longitudinally opposite waistedges, respectively designated front waist edge 38 and back waist edge39. The front waist region 22 is contiguous with the front waist edge38, and the back waist region 24 is contiguous with the back waist edge39.

The illustrated absorbent chassis 32 comprises a composite structure 33(FIG. 3), which when laid flat can be rectangular or any other desiredshape, and has a pair of laterally opposite front side panels 34 and apair of laterally opposite back side panels 134 extending outwardtherefrom. The composite structure 33 and side panels 34, 134 maycomprise two or more separate elements, as shown in FIG. 1, or beintegrally formed. Integrally formed side panels 34, 134 and compositestructure 33 would comprise at least some common materials, such as thebodyside liner, flap composite, outer cover, other materials and/orcombinations thereof, and could define a one-piece elastic, stretchable,or nonstretchable pants. The illustrated composite structure 33comprises an outer cover 40, a bodyside liner 42 (FIGS. 1 and 3)connected to the outer cover in a superposed relation, an absorbentassembly 44 (FIG. 3) disposed between the outer cover and the bodysideliner, and a pair of containment flaps 46 (FIG. 3). The illustratedcomposite structure 33 has opposite ends 45 which form portions of thefront and back waist edges 38 and 39, and opposite side edges 47 whichform portions of the side edges 36 of the absorbent chassis 32 (FIGS. 2and 3). For reference, arrows 48 and 49 depict the orientation of thelongitudinal axis and the transverse or lateral axis, respectively, ofthe training pants 20.

With the training pants 20 in the fastened position as partiallyillustrated in FIG. 1, the front and back side panels 34, 134 areconnected together by a fastening system 80 to define athree-dimensional pants configuration having an interior space 51, awaist opening 50 for receiving the wearer into the interior space of thepants, a pair of leg openings 52 and engagement seams 88 along which theside panels are connected. The interior space 51 of the pants 20 is thusbounded by the absorbent chassis 32, the engagement seams 88 and theportions of the side panels 34, 134 extending on opposite sides of theengagement seams 88 (e.g., between the engagement seams and theabsorbent chassis. As used herein, the “interior space” 51 is intendedto refer to the space between any two portions of a three-dimensionalarticle which generally oppose each other. It is understood that atransverse cross-section of the article need not be closed, e.g.,continuous, to define an interior space. For example, a two-dimensionalarticle may be generally folded over on itself so that two portions ofthe article oppose each other to define an interior space of the articletherebetween. Thus, the interior space 51 of the training pants 20 shownin FIG. 1 may be defined by the side panels 34, 134 themselves or, ifthe side panels were fully straightened therebetween, the interior spacewould be defined by a combination of the side panels and the front andback waist regions 22, 24 of the absorbent chassis 32.

The front waist region 22 comprises the portion of the training pants 20which, when worn, is positioned on the front of the wearer while theback waist region 24 comprises the portion of the training pants which,when worn, is positioned on the back of the wearer. The crotch region 26of the training pants 20 comprises the portion of the training pants 20which, when worn, is positioned between the legs of the wearer andcovers the lower torso of the wearer. The front and back side panels 34and 134 comprise the portions of the training pants 20 which, when worn,are positioned on the hips of the wearer. The waist edges 38 and 39 ofthe absorbent chassis 32 are configured to encircle the waist of thewearer when worn and together define the waist opening 50 (FIG. 1).Portions of the side edges 36 in the crotch region 26 generally definethe leg openings 52.

The absorbent chassis 32 is configured to contain and/or absorb anyexudates discharged from the wearer. For example, the absorbent chassis32 desirably although not necessarily comprises the pair of containmentflaps 46 which are configured to provide a barrier to the transverseflow of body exudates. A flap elastic member 53 (FIG. 3) can beoperatively joined with each containment flap 46 in any suitable manneras is well known in the art. The elasticized containment flaps 46 definean unattached edge which assumes an upright configuration in at leastthe crotch region 26 of the training pants 20 to form a seal against thewearer's body. The containment flaps 46 can be located along the sideedges 36 of the absorbent chassis 32, and can extend longitudinallyalong the entire length of the absorbent chassis or may only extendpartially along the length of the absorbent chassis. Suitableconstructions and arrangements for the containment flaps 46 aregenerally well known to those skilled in the art and are described inU.S. Pat. No. 4,704,116 issued Nov. 3, 1987 to Enloe, which isincorporated herein by reference.

To further enhance containment and/or absorption of body exudates, thetraining pants 20 desirably although not necessarily include a frontwaist elastic member 54, a rear waist elastic member 56, and leg elasticmembers 58, as are known to those skilled in the art (FIG. 3). The waistelastic members 54 and 56 can be operatively joined to the outer cover40 and/or the bodyside liner 42 along the opposite waist edges 38 and39, and can extend over part or all of the waist edges. The leg elasticmembers 58 can be operatively joined to the outer cover 40 and/or thebodyside liner 42 along the opposite side edges 36 and positioned in thecrotch region 26 of the training pants 20. The leg elastic members 58can be longitudinally aligned along each side edge 47 of the compositestructure 33. Each leg elastic member 58 has a front terminal point 63and a back terminal point 65, which represent the longitudinal ends ofthe elastic gathering caused by the leg elastic members. The frontterminal points 63 can be located adjacent the longitudinally innermostparts of the front side panels 34, and the back terminal points 65 canbe located adjacent the longitudinally innermost parts of the back sidepanels 134.

The flap elastic members 53, the waist elastic members 54 and 56, andthe leg elastic members 58 can be formed of any suitable elasticmaterial. As is well known to those skilled in the art, suitable elasticmaterials include sheets, strands or ribbons of natural rubber,synthetic rubber, or thermoplastic elastomeric polymers. The elasticmaterials can be stretched and adhered to a substrate, adhered to agathered substrate, or adhered to a substrate and then elasticized orshrunk, for example with the application of heat, such that elasticconstrictive forces are imparted to the substrate. In one particularembodiment, for example, the leg elastic members 58 comprise a pluralityof dry-spun coalesced multifilament spandex elastomeric threads soldunder the trade name LYCRA® and available from E. I. Du Pont de Nemoursand Company, Wilmington, Del., U.S.A.

The outer cover 40 desirably comprises a material which is substantiallyliquid impermeable, and can be elastic, stretchable or nonstretchable.The outer cover 40 can be a single layer of liquid impermeable material,but desirably comprises a multi-layered laminate structure in which atleast one of the layers is liquid impermeable. For instance, the outercover 40 can include a liquid permeable outer layer and a liquidimpermeable inner layer that are suitably joined together by a laminateadhesive, ultrasonic bonds, thermal bonds, or the like. Suitablelaminate adhesives, which can be applied continuously or intermittentlyas beads, a spray, parallel swirls, or the like, can be obtained fromFindley Adhesives, Inc., of Wauwatosa, Wis., U.S.A., or from NationalStarch and Chemical Company, Bridgewater, N.J. U.S.A. The liquidpermeable outer layer can be any suitable material and desirably onethat provides a generally cloth-like texture. One example of such amaterial is a 20 gsm (grams per square meter) spunbond polypropylenenonwoven web. The outer layer may also be made of those materials ofwhich the liquid permeable bodyside liner 42 is made. While it is not anecessity for the outer layer to be liquid permeable, it is desired thatit provides a relatively cloth-like texture to the wearer.

The inner layer of the outer cover 40 can be both liquid and vaporimpermeable, or can be liquid impermeable and vapor permeable. The innerlayer can be manufactured from a thin plastic film, although otherflexible liquid impermeable materials may also be used. The inner layer,or the liquid impermeable outer cover 40 when a single layer, preventswaste material from wetting articles, such as bedsheets and clothing, aswell as the wearer and caregiver. A suitable liquid impermeable film foruse as a liquid impermeable inner layer, or a single layer liquidimpermeable outer cover 40, is a 0.02 millimeter polyethylene filmcommercially available from Pliant Corporation of Schaumburg, Ill.,U.S.A.

If the outer cover 40 is a single layer of material, it can be embossedand/or matte finished to provide a more cloth-like appearance. Asearlier mentioned, the liquid impermeable material can permit vapors toescape from the interior space 51 of the disposable absorbent article,while still preventing liquids from passing through the outer cover 40.A suitable “breathable” material is composed of a microporous polymerfilm or a nonwoven fabric that has been coated or otherwise treated toimpart a desired level of liquid impermeability. A suitable microporousfilm is a PMP-1 film material commercially available from Mitsui ToatsuChemicals, Inc., Tokyo, Japan, or an XKO-8044 polyolefin filmcommercially available from 3M Company, Minneapolis, Minn. U.S.A.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the training pants 20 and in particular theouter cover 40 desirably comprises one or more appearance-relatedcomponents. Examples of appearance-related components include, but arenot limited to, graphics; highlighting or emphasizing leg and waistopenings in order to make product shaping more evident or visible to theuser; highlighting or emphasizing areas of the product to simulatefunctional components such as elastic leg bands, elastic waistbands,simulated “fly openings” for boys, ruffles for girls; highlighting areasof the product to change the appearance of the size of the product;registering wetness indicators, temperature indicators, and the like inthe product; registering a back label, or a front label, in the product;and registering written instructions at a desired location in theproduct.

The illustrated pair of training pants 20 is designed for use by younggirls and includes a registered outer cover graphic 60 (FIG. 2). In thisdesign, the registered graphic 60 includes a primary pictorial image 61,simulated waist ruffles 62, and simulated leg ruffles 64. The primarypictorial image 61 includes a rainbow, sun, clouds, animal characters,wagon and balloons. Any suitable design can be utilized for a trainingpants intended for use by young girls, so as to be aesthetically and/orfunctionally pleasing to them and the caregiver. The appearance-relatedcomponents are desirably positioned on the training pants 20 at selectedlocations, which can be carried out using the methods disclosed in U.S.Pat. No. 5,766,389 issued Jun. 16, 1998 to Brandon et al., the entiredisclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. The primarypictorial image 61 is desirably positioned in the front waist region 22along the longitudinal center line of the training pants 20.

The liquid permeable bodyside liner 42 is illustrated as overlying theouter cover 40 and absorbent assembly 44, and may but need not have thesame dimensions as the outer cover 40. The bodyside liner 42 isdesirably compliant, soft feeling, and non-irritating to the child'sskin. Further, the bodyside liner 42 can be less hydrophilic than theabsorbent assembly 44, to present a relatively dry surface to the wearerand permit liquid to readily penetrate through its thickness.Alternatively, the bodyside liner 42 can be more hydrophilic or can haveessentially the same affinity for moisture as the absorbent assembly 44to present a relatively wet surface to the wearer to increase thesensation of being wet. This wet sensation can be useful as a trainingaid. The hydrophilic/hydrophobic properties can be varied across thelength, width and depth of the bodyside liner 42 and absorbent assembly44 to achieve the desired wetness sensation or leakage performance.

The bodyside liner 42 can be manufactured from a wide selection of webmaterials, such as synthetic fibers (for example, polyester orpolypropylene fibers), natural fibers (for example, wood or cottonfibers), a combination of natural and synthetic fibers, porous foams,reticulated foams, apertured plastic films, or the like. Various wovenand nonwoven fabrics can be used for the bodyside liner 42. For example,the bodyside liner can be composed of a meltblown or spunbonded web ofpolyolefin fibers. The bodyside liner can also be a bonded-carded webcomposed of natural and/or synthetic fibers. The bodyside liner can becomposed of a substantially hydrophobic material, and the hydrophobicmaterial can, optionally, be treated with a surfactant or otherwiseprocessed to impart a desired level of wettability and hydrophilicity.For example, the material can be surface treated with about 0.45 weightpercent of a surfactant mixture comprising Ahcovel N-62 from HodgsonTextile Chemicals of Mount Holly, N.C., U.S.A. and Glucopan 220UP fromHenkel Corporation of Ambler, Pa. in an active ratio of 3:1. Thesurfactant can be applied by any conventional means, such as spraying,printing, brush coating or the like. The surfactant can be applied tothe entire bodyside liner 42 or can be selectively applied to particularsections of the bodyside liner, such as the medial section along thelongitudinal center line.

A suitable liquid permeable bodyside liner 42 is a nonwoven bicomponentweb having a basis weight of about 27 gsm. The nonwoven bicomponent canbe a spunbond bicomponent web, or a bonded carded bicomponent web.Suitable bicomponent staple fibers include a polyethylene/polypropylenebicomponent fiber available from CHISSO Corporation, Osaka, Japan. Inthis particular bicomponent fiber, the polypropylene forms the core andthe polyethylene forms the sheath of the fiber. Other fiber orientationsare possible, such as multi-lobe, side-by-side, end-to-end, or the like.The outer cover 40, bodyside liner 42 and other materials used toconstruct the pants can comprise elastomeric or nonelastomericmaterials.

The absorbent assembly 44 (FIG. 3) is positioned between the outer cover40 and the bodyside liner 42, which can be joined together by anysuitable means such as adhesives, ultrasonic bonds, thermal bonds, orthe like. The absorbent assembly 44 can be any structure which isgenerally compressible, conformable, non-irritating to the child's skin,and capable of absorbing and retaining liquids and certain body wastes,and may be manufactured in a wide variety of sizes and shapes, and froma wide variety of liquid absorbent materials commonly used in the art.For example, the absorbent assembly 44 can suitably comprise a matrix ofhydrophilic fibers, such as a web of cellulosic fluff, mixed withparticles of a high-absorbency material commonly known as superabsorbentmaterial. In a particular embodiment, the absorbent assembly 44comprises a matrix of cellulosic fluff, such as wood pulp fluff, andsuperabsorbent hydrogel-forming particles. The wood pulp fluff can beexchanged with synthetic, polymeric, meltblown fibers or short cuthomofil bicomponent synthetic fibers and natural fibers. Thesuperabsorbent particles can be substantially homogeneously mixed withthe hydrophilic fibers or can be nonuniformly mixed. The fluff andsuperabsorbent particles can also be selectively placed into desiredzones of the absorbent assembly 44 to better contain and absorb bodyexudates. The concentration of the superabsorbent particles can alsovary through the thickness of the absorbent assembly 44. Alternatively,the absorbent assembly 44 can comprise a laminate of fibrous webs andsuperabsorbent material or other suitable means of maintaining asuperabsorbent material in a localized area.

Suitable superabsorbent materials can be selected from natural,synthetic, and modified natural polymers and materials. Thesuperabsorbent materials can be inorganic materials, such as silicagels, or organic compounds, such as crosslinked polymers, for example,sodium neutralized polyacrylic acid. Suitable superabsorbent materialsare available from various commercial vendors, such as Dow ChemicalCompany located in Midland, Mich., U.S.A., and Stockhausen GmbH & Co.KG, D-47805 Krefeld, Federal Republic of Germany. Typically, asuperabsorbent material is capable of absorbing at least about 15 timesits weight in water, and desirably is capable of absorbing more thanabout 25 times its weight in water.

In one embodiment, the absorbent assembly 44 comprises a blend of woodpulp fluff and superabsorbent material. One preferred type of pulp isidentified with the trade designation CR1654, available from U.S.Alliance, Childersburg, Ala., U.S.A., and is a bleached, highlyabsorbent sulfate wood pulp containing primarily soft wood fibers andabout 16 percent hardwood fibers. As a general rule, the superabsorbentmaterial is present in the absorbent assembly 44 in an amount of from 0to about 90 weight percent based on total weight of the absorbentassembly. The absorbent assembly 44 suitably has a density within therange of about 0.10 to about 0.35 grams per cubic centimeter. Theabsorbent assembly 44 may or may not be wrapped or encompassed by asuitable tissue wrap that may help maintain the integrity and/or shapeof the absorbent assembly.

The absorbent chassis 32 can also incorporate other materials designedprimarily to receive, temporarily store, and/or transport liquid alongthe mutually facing surface with absorbent assembly 44, therebymaximizing the absorbent capacity of the absorbent assembly. Onesuitable material is referred to as a surge layer (not shown) andcomprises a material having a basis weight of about 50 to about 120grams per square meter, and comprising a through-air-bonded-carded webof a homogenous blend of 60 percent 3 denier type T-256 bicomponentfiber comprising a polyester core/polyethylene sheath and 40 percent 6denier type T-295 polyester fiber, both commercially available from KosaCorporation of Salisbury, N.C., U.S.A.

As noted previously, the illustrated training pants 20 have front andback side panels 34 and 134 disposed on each side of the absorbentchassis 32. The front side panels 34 can be permanently bonded alongseams 66 to the composite structure 33 of the absorbent chassis 32 inthe respective front and back waist regions 22 and 24. Moreparticularly, as seen best in FIGS. 2 and 3, the front side panels 34can be permanently bonded to and extend transversely outward beyond theside edges 47 of the composite structure 33 in the front waist region22, and the back side panels 134 can be permanently bonded to and extendtransversely outward beyond the side edges of the composite structure inthe back waist region 24. The side panels 34 and 134 may be bonded tothe composite structure 33 using attachment means known to those skilledin the art such as adhesive, thermal or ultrasonic bonding.Alternatively, the side panels 34 and 134 can be formed as an integralportion of a component of the composite structure 33. For example, theside panels can comprise a generally wider portion of the outer cover40, the bodyside liner 42, and/or another component of the absorbentchassis 32. The front and back side panels 34 and 134 can be permanentlybonded together or be releasably connected with one another such as bythe fastening system 80 of the illustrated embodiment.

The front and back side panels 34, 134 each have an outer edge 68 spacedlaterally from the seam 66, a leg end edge 70 disposed toward thelongitudinal center of the training pants 20, and a waist end edge 72disposed toward a longitudinal end of the training pants. The leg endedge 70 and waist end edge 72 extend from the side edges 47 of thecomposite structure 33 to the outer edges 68. The leg end edges 70 ofthe side panels 34 and 134 form part of the side edges 36 of theabsorbent chassis 32. In the back waist region 24, the leg end edges 70are desirably although not necessarily curved and/or angled relative tothe transverse axis 49 to provide greater coverage toward the back ofthe pants 20 as compared to the front of the pants. The waist end edges72 are desirably parallel to the transverse axis 49. The waist end edges72 of the front side panels 34 form part of the front waist edge 38 ofthe absorbent chassis 32, and the waist end edges 72 of the back sidepanels 134 form part of the back waist edge 39 of the absorbent chassis.

In particular embodiments for improved fit and appearance, the sidepanels 34, 134 desirably have an average length measured parallel to thelongitudinal axis 48 which is about 15 percent or greater, andparticularly about 25 percent or greater, of the overall length of thepants, also measured parallel to the longitudinal axis 48. For example,in training pants 20 having an overall length of about 54 centimeters,the side panels 34, 134 desirably have an average length of about 10centimeters or greater, such as about 15 centimeters. While each of theside panels 34, 134 extends from the waist opening 50 to one of the legopenings 52, the illustrated back side panels 134 have a continuallydecreasing length dimension moving from the attachment line 66 to theouter edge 68, as is best shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Each of the side panels 34, 134 can include one or more individual,distinct pieces of material. In particular embodiments, for example,each side panel 34, 134 can include first and second side panel portionsthat are joined at a seam, or can include a single piece of materialwhich is folded over upon itself (not shown).

The side panels 34, 134 desirably although not necessarily comprise anelastic material capable of stretching in a direction generally parallelto the transverse axis 49 of the training pants 20. Suitable elasticmaterials, as well as one process of incorporating elastic side panelsinto training pants, are described in the following U.S. Pat. No.4,940,464 issued Jul. 10, 1990 to Van Gompel et al.; U.S. Pat. No.5,224,405 issued Jul. 6, 1993 to Pohjola; U.S. Pat. No. 5,104,116 issuedApr. 14, 1992 to Pohjola; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,272 issued Sep. 10,1991 to Vogt et al.; all of which are incorporated herein by reference.In particular embodiments, the elastic material comprises astretch-thermal laminate (STL), a neck-bonded laminate (NBL), areversibly necked laminate, or a stretch-bonded laminate (SBL) material.Methods of making such materials are well known to those skilled in theart and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,663,220 issued May 5, 1987 toWisneski et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,226,992 issued Jul. 13, 1993 to Morman;and European Patent Application No. EP 0 217 032 published on Apr. 8,1987 in the names of Taylor et al.; all of which are incorporated hereinby reference. Alternatively, the side panel material may comprise otherwoven or nonwoven materials, such as those described above as beingsuitable for the outer cover 40 or bodyside liner 42; mechanicallypre-strained composites; or stretchable but inelastic materials.

The illustrated training pants 20 includes the fastening system 80 forrefastenably securing the training pants about the waist of the wearer.The illustrated fastening system 80 includes first fastening components82 adapted for refastenable engagement to corresponding second fasteningcomponents 84. In one embodiment, one surface of each of the firstfastening components 82 comprises a plurality of engaging elements whichproject from that surface. The engaging elements of the first fasteningcomponents 82 are adapted to repeatedly engage and disengage engagingelements of the second fastening components 84.

The fastening components can comprise separate elements bonded to theside panels, or they may be integrally formed with the side panels.Thus, unless otherwise specified, the term “fastening component”includes separate components which function as fasteners, and regions ofmaterials such as the side panels which function as fasteners. Moreover,a single material can define multiple fastening components to the extentthat different regions of the material function as separate fasteners.The fastening components 82, 84 can be located on the side panels,between the side panels such as on the absorbent chassis, or acombination of the two.

The fastening components 82, 84 can comprise any refastenable fastenerssuitable for absorbent articles, such as adhesive fasteners, cohesivefasteners, mechanical fasteners, or the like. In particular embodimentsthe fastening components comprise mechanical fastening elements forimproved performance. Suitable mechanical fastening elements can beprovided by interlocking geometric shaped materials, such as hooks,loops, bulbs, mushrooms, arrowheads, balls on stems, male and femalemating components, buckles, snaps, or the like.

The refastenable fastening system 80 allows for easy inspection of theinterior space 51 of the pants 20. If necessary, the fastening system 80also allows the pants 20 to be removed quickly and easily. This isparticularly beneficial when the pants contain messy excrement. Fortraining pants 20, the caregiver can completely remove the pant-likeproduct and replace it with a new one without having to remove thechild's shoes and clothing.

In the illustrated embodiment, the first fastening components 82comprise hook fasteners and the second fastening components 84 comprisecomplementary loop fasteners. In another particular embodiment, thefirst fastening components 82 comprise loop fasteners and the secondfastening components 84 comprise complementary hook fasteners.Alternatively, the fastening components 82, 84 can comprise interlockingsimilar surface fasteners, adhesive or cohesive fastening elements suchas an adhesive fastener and an adhesive-receptive landing zone ormaterial; or the like. Although the training pants 20 illustrated inFIG. 1 show the back side panels 134 overlapping the front side panels34 upon connection thereto, which is convenient, the training pants 20can also be configured so that the front side panels overlap the backside panels when connected. One skilled in the art will recognize thatthe shape, density and polymer composition of the hooks and loops may beselected to obtain the desired level of engagement between the fasteningcomponents 82, 84. A more aggressive hook material may comprise amaterial with a greater average hook height, a greater percentage ofdirectionally-aligned hooks, or a more aggressive hook shape.

Loop fasteners typically comprise a fabric or material having aplurality of loop members extending upwardly from at least one surfaceof the structure. The loop material can be formed of any suitablematerial, such as acrylic, nylon, polypropylene or polyester, and can beformed by methods such as warp knitting, stitch bonding or needlepunching. Loop materials can also comprise any fibrous structure capableof entangling or catching hook materials, such as carded, spunbonded orother nonwoven webs or composites, including elastomeric andnonelastomeric composites. Suitable loop materials are available fromGuilford Mills, Inc., Greensboro, N.C., U.S.A. under the tradedesignation No. 36549. Another suitable loop material can comprise apattern un-bonded web as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,858,515 issuedJan. 12, 1999 to Stokes et al.

Hook fasteners typically comprise a fabric or material having a base orbacking structure and a plurality of hook members extending upwardlyfrom at least one surface of the backing structure. In contrast to theloop fasteners which desirably comprise a flexible fabric, the hookmaterial advantageously comprises a resilient material to minimizeunintentional disengagement of the fastener components as a result ofthe hook material becoming deformed and catching on clothing or otheritems. The term “resilient” as used herein comprises an interlockingmaterial having a predetermined shape and the property of theinterlocking material to resume the predetermined shape after beingengaged and disengaged from a mating, complementary interlockingmaterial. Suitable hook material can be molded or extruded from nylon,polypropylene or another suitable material. Suitable single-sided hookmaterials for the fastening components 82, 84 are available fromcommercial vendors such as Velcro Industries B.V., Amsterdam,Netherlands or affiliates thereof, and are identified as Velcro HTH-829with a unidirectional hook pattern and having a thickness of about 0.9millimeters (35 mils) and HTH-851 with a unidirectional hook pattern andhaving a thickness of about 0.5 millimeters (20 mils); and MinnesotaMining & Manufacturing Co., St. Paul, Minn. U.S.A., including specificmaterials identified as CS-600.

With particular reference to FIG. 3, the fastening components 82 aredisposed on the inner surface 28 of the back side panels 134. Thefastening components 82 are desirably positioned along the outer edges68 of the back side panels 134, and abutting or adjacent to the waistend edge 72. In certain embodiments, for example, the fasteningcomponents 82 can be located within about 2 centimeters, and moreparticularly within about 1 centimeter, of the outer edges 68, the waistend edges 72, and the leg end edges 70. With particular reference toFIG. 2, the second fastening components 84 are disposed on the outersurface 30 of the front side panels 134. The second fastening components84 are sized to receive the first fastening components 82 and aredesirably positioned along the outer edges 68 of the front side panels34, and abutting or adjacent to the waist end edge 72. As an example,the second fastening components 84 can be located within about 2centimeters, and more particularly within about 1 centimeter, of theouter edges 68, the waist end edges 72, and the leg end edges 70. Wherethe first fastening components 82 comprise loop fasteners disposed onthe inner surface 28 and the second fastening components 84 comprisehook fasteners disposed on the outer surface 30, the first fasteningcomponents can be sized larger than the second fastening components toensure coverage of the rigid, outwardly-directed hooks.

The fastening components 84, 82 can be adhered to the respective sidepanels 34, 134 by any means known to those skilled in the art such asadhesive bonds, ultrasonic bonds or thermal bonds. The fasteningcomponents 82, 84 may comprise separate fastening elements or distinctregions of an integral material. For example, the training pants 20 caninclude an integral second fastening material disposed in the frontwaist region 22 for refastenably connecting to the first fasteningcomponents 82 at two or more different regions, which define the secondfastening components 84 (FIG. 1). In a particular embodiment, thefastening components 82, 84 can comprise integral portions of the waistregions 24, 22. For instance, one of the elastomeric front or back sidepanels 34, 134 can function as second fastening components 84 in thatthey can comprise a material which is releasably engageable withfastening components 82 disposed in the opposite waist region.

The fastening components 82, 84 of the illustrated embodiments arerectangular, although they may alternatively be square, round, oval,curved or otherwise non-rectangularly shaped. In particular embodiments,each of the fastening components 82, 84 has a length aligned generallyparallel to the longitudinal axis 48 of the training pants 20 and awidth aligned generally parallel to the transverse axis 49 of thetraining pants. For a child of about 9 to about 15 kilograms (20–30pounds), for example, the length of the fastening components 82, 84 isdesirably from about 5 to about 13 centimeters, such as about 10centimeters, and the width is desirably from about 0.5 to about 3centimeters, such as about 1 centimeter. With particular embodiments,the fastening components 82, 84 can have a length-to-width ratio ofabout 2 or greater, such as about 2 to about 25, and more particularlyabout 5 or greater, such as about 5 to about 8. For other embodimentssuch as for adult products, it may be desirable for one or more of thefastening components to comprise a plurality of relatively smallerfastening elements. In that case, a fastening component or individualfastening elements may have an even smaller length-to-width ratio, forexample, of about 2 or less, and even about 1 or less.

As shown in FIG. 1, when the fastening components 82, 84 are releasablyconnected, the side edges 36 of the absorbent chassis 32 in the crotchregion 26 define the leg openings 52, and the waist edges 38 and 39 ofthe absorbent chassis, including the waist end edges 72 of the sidepanels 34, 134, define the waist opening 50. For improved formation ofthe leg openings 52, it can be desirable in some embodiments for thefront side panels 34 to be longitudinally spaced from the back sidepanels 134 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. For example, the front side panels34 can be longitudinally spaced from the back side panels 134 by adistance equal to about 20 percent or greater, particularly from about20 to about 60 percent, and more particularly from about 35 to about 50percent, of the overall length of the pants 20.

When connected, the fastening components 82, 84 of the illustratedembodiment define refastenable engagement seams 88 (FIG. 1) whichdesirably although not necessarily extend substantially the entiredistance between the waist opening 50 and the leg openings 52. Morespecifically, the engagement seams 88 can cover about 75 to 100 percent,and particularly about 90 to about 98 percent, of the distance betweenthe waist opening 50 and each leg opening 52, which distance is measuredparallel to the longitudinal axis 48. To construct the engagement seams88 to extend substantially the entire distance between the waist and legopenings 50 and 52, the fastening components 82, 84 can be formed tocover about 80 to 100 percent, and more particularly about 90 to about98 percent, of the distance between the waist end edge 70 and the legend edge 72 of the side panels 34, 134. In other embodiments, thefastening components can comprise a plurality of smaller fasteningelements covering a smaller portion of the distance between the waistopening 50 and the leg openings 52, but spaced apart to span a largedistance between the waist opening and the leg openings.

For the engagement seams 88 to be located at the sides of the wearer, itcan be particularly desirable for the transverse distance between thefastening components 82 of the back side panels 134 to be substantiallyequal to the transverse distance between the fastening components 84 ofthe front side panel 134. The transverse distance between a set offastening components 82, 84 is measured parallel to the transverse axis49 between the longitudinal center lines of the fastening component,measured with the side panels 34, 134 in an unstretched condition.

FIG. 4A is a block diagram of an information system 1100, suitable foruse in connection with a continuous production line 1102 manufacturingcomposite products such as, for example, the above-described trainingpants or other disposable absorbent garments. Such articles aregenerally fabricated using high speed web converting processes. Forexample, some articles are fabricated at speeds in excess of 300products/minute, and some articles may be fabricated at speeds in excessof 500 products/minute, by a converting process that includes asequential addition of component parts (e.g., web materials, graphics,elastic components, and so on) during a production run. It should beunderstood that articles may be fabricated in accordance with thesystems and methods described herein at lower or higher speeds, theforegoing being provided for exemplary purposes.

In one aspect, the system comprises an inspection system 1104 having aplurality of inspection devices (identified generally in FIG. 4A asreference character 1106) positioned at various places along theproduction line 1102 to inspect different components of each compositeproduct produced. In the illustrated embodiment, the inspection devices1106 preferably comprise CCD cameras, such as Sony CCD cameras, part No.XC-75, coupled to one or more machine vision inspection systems, such asa Cognex 8120 series processor running Checkpoint® III software,available from Cognex Corporation, of Natick, Mass., U.S.A. An advantageof such an inspection system is that it provides a processor for visionsystem purposes and another processor for networking purposes.

As a particular example, two such cameras coupled to a Cognex 8120series processor running Checkpoint® III software can be used to inspectthe amount of overlap between fastening components 82, 84, of fasteningsystem 80 used in connection with the above-described training pants, ator near the leg and waist extremes of fastening system 80 (FIGS. 1–3).More particularly, one camera is positioned to capture an image offastening system 80 as completed (e.g., first and second fasteningcomponents 82, 84 being engaged) on the left side of the product. Asecond camera is positioned to capture an image of fastening system 80on the right side of the product at substantially the same time. Theinspection system (which could be any type of examination systemincluding a SICK detector, photoeye, proximity switch or machine visionsystem) determines an amount of overlap between fastening components 82and 84 for each side of the product.

Further, and as is generally known in the art, machine vision systems,such as the Cognex 8120 series processor and Checkpoint® III softwareuse machine vision “tools” to determine an inspection parameter. In thisexample, the inspection parameter comprises an amount of overlap betweentwo fastening components during the manufacture of a training pant. Thetools are configured, again as is known in the art, to detect edges onthe basis of gray scale differences within a region of captured images.Preferably, the machine vision system is configured to provide anindication of when it senses an error or failure of its tools (e.g., theobject to be inspected is not present or there is insufficient grayscale signal strength due to poor contrast resulting from materialvariability, lighting variability, presentation of the object to thecamera lens, and/or camera focus/aperture settings). In such case, themachine vision system may or may not provide an inspection parameter,but it is preferable that such system provides an indication of theexistence of an inspection failure (such as a tool failure) so that anydata can be addressed accordingly (e.g., data relating to anincomplete/inaccurate inspection or a failed tool may be discarded,ignored, or discounted in value).

It should be appreciated and understood that the foregoing discussionregarding inspecting fastening components 82 and 84 is provided forexemplary purposes. Other inspection systems, cameras, and methodologiesare compatible with the present disclosure.

Depending upon placement, machine vision inspection systems provide anability to detect substantially all points on all products produced, andallow for image processing of the detected points.

Other inspection devices 1108 may also be used in connection withinformation system 1100. Such other inspection devices 1108 include anumber of suitable devices, and should be selected according to theparticular inspection need. For example, it has been found to beadvantageous to employ edge detection inspection devices, such as PartNo. 85427-002, available from Fife Corporation, Oklahoma City, Okla.,U.S.A., in order to detect the edges of moving webs and for guiding suchmoving webs in a desired path. Other inspection devices include photoeyesensors (e.g., MAXIBEAM® photoeyes, available from Banner EngineeringCorporation, Minneapolis, Minn., U.S.A.), and UV sensors, such as UVphotoeye sensors (e.g., LUT1-4 series luminescence sensors, availablefrom Sick, Inc., Bloomington, Minn., U.S.A.).

As an example, it is also contemplated that product spacing informationmay be detected and tracked by photoeyes. For example, after the finalcut off (where the continuous web of pants is cut into individualpants), the training pants are discrete objects flowing through thefolding, fastening, side panel tucking, and cull processes. Because ofthe timing of these processes, there may be a need to maintainconsistent pant-to-pant spacing. In this case, photoeyes may beinstalled to monitor the pant spacing at several locations after thefinal cut off.

In one embodiment, an information exchange 1110 is connected to receiveinspection data from inspection system 1104. Preferably, the informationexchange 1110 is also connected to one or more manufacturing-relateddatabases and systems such as, for example, a quality system 1112, amachine set point database 1114, a registration control system 1116, anoperator display/interface 1118, a waste/delay database 1120, or a rawmaterial database 1122.

The information exchange 1110 preferably comprises a computer system.More particularly, in one such an embodiment, information exchange 1110comprises a personal computer (PC) running SoftLogix™ v.10, availablefrom Rockwell Automation. Advantageously, such a configuration allowsthe PC to operate as a “soft” PLC. Information exchange 1110 furthercomprises a SoftLogix™ controller running RSLogix™ 5000 software, whichis substantially the same programming software used for ControlLogix™.These products are also available from Rockwell Automation. The RSLogix™5000 program reads inspection measurements off of an information network(e.g., a distributed node, shared memory system such as the REFLECTIVEMEMORY network described below). It should be understood that such acomputer system is thereafter programmed to perform the specificfunctions desired. For example, and as will be appreciated from thedescriptions that follow, in one embodiment dynamic link libraries(“DLL's” which may be written in the C programming language) are used toperform desired statistical/mathematical calculations and to read/writeinformation to reflective memory. Processor speed should be selected onthe basis of the volume of information and how often the information isprovided/updated. For example, when inspecting training pants, which arepreferably manufactured at high converting speeds, high processingspeeds are desirable (especially if data is gathered for each productproduced during a production run). In particular, information exchange1110 is configured to perform one or more of the following exemplarytasks:

-   -   monitor/receive inspection data regarding substantially all        products produced during a production run or a sample set        thereof;    -   determine relevant mathematical characteristics of the        inspection data, including determining averages and standard        deviations;    -   filter inspection data, for example, to eliminate clearly        out-of-bounds data (e.g., compare to upper and/or lower limits),        or to eliminate inspection data reflecting errors of machine        vision tools associated with the inspection system;    -   compare inspection data (and/or the mathematical characteristics        of such data) to targets/tolerances/limits and to monitor        trends;    -   publish inspection data, mathematical characteristics of such        data, or the results of comparing such data to targets for use        by other manufacturing systems or for storage;    -   generate quality reports;    -   generate machine set point changes and registration control set        point changes;    -   generate troubleshooting recommendations;    -   provide inspection data and/or mathematical characteristics of        such data for use by other systems to accomplish one or more of        the above exemplary tasks;    -   provide machine direction registration control (e.g., in the        direction of product flow through the machine); and/or provide        registration control in a cross direction (e.g., perpendicular        to the machine direction.        It should be further understood that multiple information        exchanges can be used to achieve additional levels of        distribution of processing.

In one embodiment, each of the above described systems and databases isconnected to a communication network 1124. Preferably, the communicationnetwork 1124 comprises a distributed node, shared memory system whereincamera inspection system 1104, information exchange 1110, quality system1112, machine set point database 1114, registration system 1116,operator interface 1118, waste/delay database 1120, and/or raw materialdatabase 1122 comprise nodes of the network. One suitable distributednode, shared memory network system is commercially available from EncoreReal Time Computing, Inc., under the mark REFLECTIVE MEMORY System(RMS™). In such a system, applications write relevant data to a localmemory and the REFLECTIVE MEMORY hardware facilitates transfer of thedata to the local memory of the other nodes, at extremely high speeds.The high speed and high bandwidth characteristics of such a systempermits real time usage of inspection data developed by inspectionsystem 1104, as well as other data available to information system 1100.In an alternative embodiment, each of the various systems are directlyconnected, as reflected by the dashed lines in FIG. 4A. In still anotherembodiment, communication between the systems comprises the use of bothdirect connections, as well as communication network 1124. The foregoingcommunications may be over wired connections, wireless connections, orpartially wired and partially wireless connections.

The operation of information system 1100 will now be described inconnection with several advantageous operational configurations. Otheroperational aspects will become apparent in the context of certainmethods suitable for use in connection with system 1100, which aredescribed below.

Real Time Quality System

In one aspect, information system 1100 is useful for providing a realtime quality data information system for use in connection withmanufacturing disposable absorbent garments, manufactured by thesequential addition of component parts (including web materials). Forsimplicity, the operation will be described in terms of inspectingtraining pants, such as those illustrated and described with respect toFIGS. 1–3. In general, inspection system 1104 inspects a plurality ofquality aspects of each (or a statistical sample) training pant producedduring a given production run. For example, inspection systems 1104 and1108 detect a measurement of a placement of a component (e.g., relativeto another component). One specific example of such a measurement is ameasurement of an overlap between hook and loop components ofrefastenable fastening system 80 of each training pant produced. Such ameasurement may be provided by an optical detection system althoughother types of measurements (e.g., flow, temperature, pressure, etc.)may be made by other types of inspection and/or detection systems (e.g.,flow meters, temperature sensors, pressure transducers, etc.). As afurther example, such measurements and such systems may be used forprocess setting checks.

An inspection parameter is thereafter published for use on communicationnetwork 1124. In the present example, the inspection parameter maycomprise a numerical indication of the detected amount of overlapbetween fastening components, and is correlated to a particular productproduced. Correlation to a particular product can be achieved a numberof ways, including assigning a product index number to each productproduced. Information exchange 1110 thereafter obtains the inspectionparameter and determines a quality parameter based thereon which isthereafter stored in quality system 1112. For example, informationexchange 1110 can be programmed to monitor a memory location having theproduct index numbers stored therein. Each time the product index numberincrements, information exchange 1110 obtains the latest inspection datafrom the network. It should be appreciated that information exchange1110 can also be configured to update its information based on asampling plan (e.g., every fifth increment in the product index number).It should further be appreciated that it is also possible to store theinspection parameter as a quality parameter directly in quality system1112.

One advantage of the present system is that it allows for real timequality monitoring and data storage without the need of a qualitytechnician. Further, the present system is suitable for use withdiscontinuous items (e.g., hook and loop fastener components added toform a fastening system 80 as part of a training pant). This is unlikeprior art inspection systems that attempt to capture quality data inreal time in connection with continuous webs of materials.

In one embodiment, information exchange 1110 repeatedly accumulatesinspection parameters associated with a plurality of training pantsproduced during a particular production run (e.g., the fifty most recentpants produced). Thereafter, information exchange 1110 computes anaverage and standard deviation of the accumulated plurality ofparameters and compares the average and/or standard deviation to atarget reflecting desirable quality characteristics. For example, if theinspection parameter is a numerical value indicative of a measuredamount of hook-to-loop overlap for a refastenable training pant, thetarget can be an ideal value for an average or standard deviation, alimit, a range of values defining upper and lower tolerances, and so on.Product quality can be graded by comparing the average and/or standarddeviation (e.g., a percent defective based on the average and standarddeviation) to the target. As a result of this comparison, informationexchange 1110 determines the quality parameter and makes it availablefor storage in the quality system. This is preferably repeated for eachsuccessive plurality of produced product.

In one preferred embodiment, average and standard deviation data is usedto calculate a percent defective value. The percent defective value isthereafter compared to a target (e.g., an allowable percent defective)to determine if the calculated percent defective value is close to orbeyond the percent defective limit. More particularly, raw data iscollected until a sample set of data has been obtained. Preferably thenumber of data points comprising a full sample set is configurable(e.g., 25 to 600 products inspected). An array of averages and an arrayof standard deviations are calculated. An array of target values and oneor more arrays of limit conditions are previously stored in the system.An algorithm (e.g., written in C++) calculates a theoretical percentdefective (i.e., how many products are theoretically outside the givenlimits, assuming a perfect normal distribution with the given averageand standard deviation), and passes the percent defective informationarray back to an RSLogix™ program (discussed above) to performadditional functions (e.g., alarming decisionmaking) based on thepercent defective array.

Alternatively (or additionally), the average and standard deviation canbe compared to a target and limits as in control chart methods/practice.

In a similar embodiment, information exchange 1110 provides the averageand/or standard deviation information (or another mathematicalcharacteristic of relevance) to another manufacturing system which canstore the information and/or compare the information to a target. Forexample, in one embodiment, information exchange 1110 sends the averageand standard deviation information to operator interface 1118 (FIG. 4A).Software associated with operator interface 1118 compares the averageand/or standard deviation information to a target, and thereafterpresents the information to an operator.

In some contexts, it will be advantageous to know the quality associatedwith each product or package of products actually made available forsale—as opposed to the quality of all products produced, which wouldinclude culled products. Therefore, it is seen to be advantageous toprovide an indication of whether a particular inspection parameter isassociated with a culled product, as well to maintain a relationshipbetween non-culled products and the packages into which they are to be(or have been) packaged for shipping. Thus, inspection data (and dataderived therefrom) may be identified by population sets. One possiblepopulation set includes all data associated with a production run. Adifferent population set may include all data associated with a sampleset of products produced during the production run. Another populationset includes only data associated with culled products. Still anotherpopulation set includes only data associated with non-culled products(e.g., those being packaged for sale). Other population sets arepossible.

Preferably, camera inspection system 1104 and/or one of the otherinspection systems 1108 are configured to provide a signal/indication ofwhich inspected products have been automatically culled by theinspection system. Automatic culling during manufacturing is known inthe art and will not be further described herein. If informationexchange 1110 receives a culled indication, it can eliminate theinspection data associated with the culled product when determining thequality parameter so that only data associated with non-culled productsis stored in quality system 1112. This permits the manufacturer todetermine with a great deal of precision the quality of the products itmakes available for use in the market place. For example, if a group ofproducts is consistently at the margin of acceptable quality, thatproduct might be packaged for discount sale. Similarly, such a systemprovides the manufacturer with a high degree of confidence thatsubstantially all products reaching consumers will exhibit positivequality characteristics. This provides a substantial advantage overprior art systems that rely on manual quality determinations of alimited number of the non-culled products produced.

At this point, it is instructive to note that information can beaccumulated for all products inspected (e.g., both culled andnon-culled), or a subset of all products inspected (e.g., onlynon-culled products). Further, information can be accumulated for allproducts inspected and, thereafter, subsets of the accumulated data maybe used for a particular purpose. In this way, information may beaccumulated for a variety of purposes. For example, quality data canfocus on non-culled products, while waste assessments can focus onculled products. Similarly, process-health related analyses can focus oninformation from both culled and non-culled products.

In one embodiment, information exchange 1110 and/or quality system 1112make available quality reporting data. Such quality reporting data caninclude real time data associated with each product produced (or asample set of such data or mathematical characteristics of such data).For example, the quality data can be provided for display on operatorinterface 1118. A machine operator can view this data in real or nearreal time and monitor trends. For instance, quality data can bedisplayed against one or more targets. One example of a display whichmay optionally be used is a box-whisker plot of the data. This type ofdisplay graphically shows the user the average, upper and lowerquartiles, and extremes of the data. It is a good graphical method toshow average and variability information in one display. Other displaysare also contemplated.

If the data is trending away from a desired target (or toward a limit),the operator can make a determination of how to alter the process beforethe quality data becomes unacceptable. Further, quality reporting frominformation exchange 1110 and/or quality system 1112 can correlatestored quality data to package codes (e.g., individual bags or cases ofproducts). For example, when product is packed, the package code can besent to information exchange 1110 and/or quality system 1112. Similarly,if repacking of any product occurs, codes can likewise be provided andstored.

One particular advantage of the present quality inspection system isthat it does not require any destructive testing in order to acquire thequality data. For example, it is known to use “disappearing graphics” ontraining pants. The graphics are designed to disappear as exudates aredischarged from the wearer. A prior art destructive test is sometimesreferred to as a pulsed adhesive test for determining whether there isany glue on the poly cover relative to the graphics. The inspectionsystems and methods described herein allow for the use of a visionsystem to detect the presence of adhesive (glue) relative to thedisappearing graphics, without the need for destructive testing. Morespecifically, an ultraviolet light may be used to fluoresce an opticalbrightener contained in the adhesive, thereby making the adhesivevisible to the machine vision camera. It is also contemplated that theglue could be detected by other means such as SICK detectors or otherinspection systems. Advantageously, when using the machine visionsystem, the camera can also see/detect material edges such that adetermination can be made as to whether the glue is in a correctlocation. As one alternative, non-ultraviolet lighting can also be used,with the lighting positioned such that the adhesive casts shadows whichare visible to the camera. In the context of a product comprisingtraining pants, this would preferably be done prior to pant construction(e.g., immediately after applying glue to the outer cover web, butbefore the web is applied to the final product).

Further, such approaches do not require any products to be removed fromthe line and manually inspected. Of course, manual inspection andselective destructive testing can be used in connection with the presentsystem and the results of such tests can be provided directly to qualitysystem 1112 and/or information exchange 1110.

Another advantage of the quality inspection system disclosed herein isthe ability to correlate data from a variety of sources. For example,information exchange 1110 can retrieve waste and/or delay data stored inwaste/delay database 1120 and relate such data to inspection and qualitydata obtained from inspection system 1104 or manually entered intoquality system 1112. Such waste and delay information can include, forexample, the number of products produced and/or culled during aparticular production run or work shift. By correlating this informationin time with the inspection system, information exchange 1110 enables anoperator or logic system to spot trends between quality data andwaste/delay information, machine crew information, and so on.

Similarly, in one embodiment information exchange 1110 retrievesmachine/process set point information from machine set point database1114 and/or registration system and correlates such data toinspection/quality data. By correlating this information in time, it ispossible to identify machine/process setting contributions to productquality. This information is also useful for improving future productionruns and/or to automatically make adjustments to current productionruns. Likewise, information exchange 1110 can correlate raw materialdata from raw material database 1122 to product quality for determiningraw material contributions (positive and negative) to quality and/orproductivity.

It is instructive to note at this point that data manipulation can beaccomplished within a processor associated with information exchange1110, or in another system. For example, data manipulation can beaccomplished in one or more vision inspection system computers (e.g.,computers associated with inspection system 1104), a quality system(e.g., quality system 1112), a registration control system (e.g., system1116), and so on. This aspect of the present disclosure is reflected, atleast in part, by the dotted lines indicating information flow into andout of information exchange 1110, as well as the use of communicationnetwork 1124 for information flow. Further, although no particular datamanipulation task need be accomplished in information exchange 1110, theuse of information exchange 1110 facilitates an exchange ofdata/information, thereby allowing such data/information to be relatedtogether in the various advantageous ways such as those describedherein.

FIG. 4B schematically illustrates information flow to and from aninformation exchange, such as information exchange 1110 of FIG. 4A. Asillustrated, information may flow both to and from the informationexchange using an information network.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are logic flow diagrams illustrating a method(identified generally as reference character 1150) of providing realtime quality information, suitable for use in connection with aninspection system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A. At block 1152, aninspection system automatically inspects one or more aspects of theproduct being produced (e.g., a machine vision inspection system detectsa measurement of the hook-to-loop overlap of a training pant). Asindicated above, inspection system 1104 (FIG. 4A) can detect an absoluteplacement of one or more components, or a relative placement of onecomponent relative to another component, or a combination of absoluteand relative placements. At block 1154, a quality parameter isdetermined in association with the inspected aspect of the productproduced. In one form, the quality parameter is a numerical valuecorresponding to the inspected aspect (e.g., a numerical value of thehook-to-loop overlap detected by a machine vision system). The qualityparameter is thereafter correlated to specific products inspected (block1156). Preferably, this correlation is done at least on the basis of aproduct index and/or time, but may be done on other bases. For example,if a unique serial number or lot number is assigned to a particularproduct, the quality parameter can be correlated in that way as well. Atblock 1158 a determination is made as to whether the quality parameteris associated with a culled product. As reflected by blocks 1160 and1162, it is generally believed to be preferable (and not mandatory)—forquality purposes—to store quality data only with respect to non-culledproducts.

In one embodiment, a culled/non-culled signal is correlated to theparticular product inspected using a shift register approach. Morespecifically, the inspection system sets an offset for each inspectionpoint on the machine. For example, assume that one inspection point(e.g., a photoeye positioned to detect a flap position) detects amisalignment with respect to a particular product that should lead toculling that product. The inspection system knows the position of thatproduct relative to the next available culling point because it knowsthe location of the inspection point. As such, the system can use anoffset and shift register to track the product being culled.

Further, it should be understood that the stored quality data can relateto individual inspected products, or to a mathematical characteristic ofa plurality of all products or culled products or non-culled products.For example, the stored quality data can reflect an average and/orstandard deviation of each 50 non-culled products produced during theproduction run. Advantageously, average and standard deviation data isuseful for identifying a percent “defective” characteristic relative toa target(s) (e.g., an acceptability range). It should be understood thatother sample sets may be used. For example, a suitable sample set can beselected and inspected such that a statistical representation of aquality characteristic of substantially all products produced during theproduction run may be determined from the inspected sample set.

Connector A (block 1168) is a connection to a flow diagram (FIG. 5B)that illustrates exemplary steps for determining a quality parameter asa function of a plurality of inspection measurements. At blocks 1170 and1172, the inspection system obtains an image of one or more componentparts and publishes a numerical value corresponding to a detectedplacement of the one or more component parts. At block 1174, a pluralityof the published numerical values of the detected placements areaccumulated so that a mathematical characteristic (e.g., average andstandard deviation, as shown in block 1176) can be used to determine thequality parameter to be stored (block 1178).

Referring again to FIG. 5A, at blocks 1164 and 1166, the stored qualitydata is used to prepare a quality report for publication and use. In oneform, the quality report is a computed, exponentially weighted movingaverage of the quality data stored in the quality database. It should beunderstood, however, that a large variety of quality reports and reportformats can be achieved with the novel systems and methods disclosedherein.

Connector B (block 1180) is a connection to a flow diagram (FIG. 5B)that illustrates exemplary uses of the quality report prepared andpublished at blocks 1164, 1166 of FIG. 5A. One such use is todisplay—preferably in real time—the quality report to an operatorassociated with the manufacturing process. Another exemplary use is todisplay the quality parameter relative to a standard/target. Forinstance, the quality parameter can be displayed relative to upper andlower quality limits, or a number of “quality bins” (e.g., best quality,nominal/acceptable quality, degraded quality, and unacceptable quality).Yet another exemplary use of the quality report is to correlate thedetermined quality parameters to a package of products produced duringthe production run.

Connector C (block 1184) is a connection to a flow diagram (FIG. 5B)that illustrates additional ways to use quality data developed duringmethod 1150. Although connector C is illustrated as occurring betweenblocks 1162 and 1164, such other uses are not limited to being performedat that particular point in the method. As illustrated in block 1186 ofFIG. 5B, quality data can be related to raw material data so thatrelationships between raw material and quality can be mined. Likewise,quality data can also be related to productivity data (e.g., waste anddelay data) to determine relationships between quality and waste/delay.Similarly, quality data can be related to machine set point informationso that relationship between quality measurements and process/machinesettings can be identified and used to improve quality.

Quality data can be related to raw material data so that relationshipsbetween raw material and quality can be mined. For example, data from aninspection system positioned to detect side panel skew in a trainingpant manufacturing process can be correlated to particular material lots(i.e., using a raw material database) to determine if materialproperties affect the converting process and product quality in anysignificant way.

Quality data can also be related to productivity data to determinerelationships between quality and waste/delay. For example, juxtaposingcross direction material overlap variability determinations with machinewaste data provide an indication of the relative importance of reducingfastening overlap variability (i.e., for a prefastened training pant) tothe productivity of the manufacturing process. Assume, as a furtherexample, that it is desirable to reduce average fastening overlapvariability by 0.5 mm, data from a prior production run is analyzed todetermine whether there was any marked improved in waste during times atwhich the measured overlap variability fell within the desired range. Ifthere was no marked improvement, the cost of achieving the improvementin variability might not be justified.

Relationships between quality measurements and process/machine settingscan also be identified and used to improve quality. Referring to themanufacture of prefastened training pants as an example, in trying toreduce fastening overlap variability (e.g., in a machine direction), anoperator could vary/change settings of relevant vacuum levels on themachine. An automated quality data system can detect such changessubstantially immediately, so that the modification to the machine canbe evaluated in the short term by comparing, for example, average andstandard deviation information to those achieved before the change.Unlike the prior art, this approach permits much faster processoptimization and further permits quality determinations associated withor correlated to one or more composite products produced during theproduction run.

Another example of an advantage, in the context of improving fasteneroverlap with prefastened training pants, is the position of a deviceused in the fastening operation (e.g., a folding board or a foldingfinger) can be monitored with an electric tape or with an LVDT (linearvoltage differential transducer) to identify and determine the impact offinger placement on fastener overlap quality.

As still another example, side panel base material (sometimes referredto as “SBL”) stretch to stop information (e.g., test data available froma raw material database and supplied by the raw material supplier) canbe used to automatically adjust a side panel cut length (and/or finishedproduct panel width).

Although a wide variety of advantages are possible, it should also beunderstood that less data can be monitored, stored and used, ifdesirable. For example, in some applications, computer storagelimitations may present concerns. In those and similar situations,periodic sampling of measurements can be employed to reduce the amountof data handling required.

As can be appreciated from the foregoing, the systems and methods forautomating quality processes disclosed herein provide distinctadvantages over prior art systems that require a quality technician tomanually measure and enter quality measurements into a quality database.A specific example is instructive. With prior art manual inspectionsystems (i.e., those in which quality data is not tied to productpackages), if the inspector finds a defect, the inspector must typically“back track,” starting with packaging at the end of the machine untilhe/she finds the end of defect occurrences. This can be significantbecause an inspector can only inspect a limited number of items—perhapsone item every 30 minutes or so. By tracking data in real time andrelating that data to a package code (e.g., bag or case), operatorsand/or quality inspectors are notified as to the existence of defectsfaster (i.e., those not significant enough to cause an automatic cull,but beyond acceptable limits) and to pinpoint those defects to aparticular package or group of packages. Further, with the presentquality inspection systems and methods, quality reports can be generatedthat include quality data for substantially every product shipped,rather than just a few products that are manually inspected during eachproduction run. Also, the present quality systems and methods permitoperators to relate inspection data to other manufacturing-related datathat may be available which is useful for root cause failure analysis,process improvement, and problem elimination. Such othermanufacturing-related data includes raw material data, machine settingsdata (including changes to such settings during a production run),and/or waste/delay data.

FIG. 6 is a logic flow diagram of a method of using quality informationfrom a raw material database to adjust process settings, suitable foruse in connection with the information system 1100 of FIG. 4A. At block1202, quality information associated with raw material is stored in araw material database. Preferably, the raw material supplier providesthis information. For example, as described above in connection withFIGS. 1–3, in one embodiment of a child's training pant 20, side panels34, 134 desirably (although not necessarily) comprise an elasticmaterial capable of stretching in a direction generally parallel to thetransverse axis 49 of the training pants 20. A certain amount ofstretching, therefore, is desirable. Advantageously, the qualityinspection systems and methods disclosed herein allow for theelimination of redundant testing of side panel stretch testing, such asa stretch to stop test. For example, the supplier of the elasticmaterial used to supply side panels 34, 134 typically provides datacorresponding to a stretch to stop test conducted on the suppliedelastic material. That data can be entered directly into a qualitysystem associated with the product being manufactured from the rawmaterial (e.g., quality system 1112 of FIG. 4A in connection withmanufacturing training pants). With this data in the system, there is nolonger a need to conduct a stretch to stop on a finished product becausethe information is already known.

Referring still to FIG. 6, at block 1204 and 1206 the raw materialquality data is correlated to products being produced on the productionline. For example, it is known in the art to track when a particularspindle of material is switched into (or out of) a production lineprocess. Further, the pertinent raw material quality data can be storedin a code (e.g., a bar code) associated with the material itself. Thus,an operator can use a code reader to extract the data and have that datapublished (e.g., via raw material system 1122 or information exchange1110 of FIG. 4A) for use by other manufacturing information systems. Forexample, at blocks 1210–1214, the information exchange 1110 can obtainthe raw material quality information, as well as process settings (e.g.,from machine set point data base 1114 or registration system 1116) and,based on the raw material quality information, adjust a machine setting.

Registration Set Point Control System

Referring again to FIG. 4A, information system 1100 can also beconfigured to provide a real time automatic registration set pointcontrol system. Such a system is particularly useful in connection withmanufacturing disposable absorbent garments made from a sequentialaddition of component parts requiring registration during a productionrun. Such a system is particularly useful for controlling registrationof one or more components of a training pant.

An inspection system (e.g., camera inspection system 1104 or one of theother inspection systems 1108) is employed to inspect a component partof composite products produced during the production run.Advantageously, the inspected aspects of the component parts can be thesame aspects inspected as part of the quality system described above.Preferably, the inspection system is configured to inspect each productproduced or a statistical sampling of products. The inspection systemthereafter publishes an inspection parameter that provides an indicationof a characteristic of the inspected component part. Informationexchange 1110 thereafter obtains the inspection parameter (e.g., viacommunication network 1124) and determines a set point adjustment as afunction of the inspection parameter. The set point adjustment is usedto adjust a set point of registration system 1116.

Various aspects of controlling registration in connection withmanufacturing training pants (e.g., prefastened training pants) helpillustrate additional aspects of registration set point control systemconstructed and operated in accordance with aspects of the presentdisclosure. For example, and as described above with in connection withFIGS. 1–3, it is considered desirable to control longitudinal placementof side panel 34, 134 component parts of training pants 20. Thus, thereis a need to control the longitudinal placement of side panels 34, 134.One or more photoeye sensors (i.e., part of the other inspection systems1108 illustrated in FIG. 4A) detect and control the longitudinalplacement of each side panel. An exemplary photoeye type is theMAXI-BEAM® series, available from Banner Engineering Corporation,Minneapolis, Minn., U.S.A. More particularly, one or more photoeyesdetect the leading edge of the side panel in the longitudinal direction.One or more cameras of camera inspection system 1104 are positioned“downstream” from the photoeye sensor(s) to double check thelongitudinal placement of the side panels. For example, a machine visionsystem captures an image of the entire product at a point after the sidepanel placement takes place. The machine vision system is preferablyprogrammed to detect gray scale differences in the captured image(s) todetermine an absolute position of the side panel placement on eachproduct produced during a production run. The determined longitudinalposition of the side panel is compared to a target (e.g., in informationexchange 1110 or in another subsystem such as registration system 1116).Based on an amount of difference between the determined absoluteposition of the side panel placement and the target, the photoeye setpoint is adjusted to maintain the longitudinal placement withindesirable bounds. It should be understood that variations are possible.For instance, in one embodiment, rather than comparing each determinedposition of the side panel placement to a target, information exchange1110 (or another subsystem such as registration system 1116) accumulatesa plurality of measurements. The set point determination is then made onthe basis of a characteristic of the accumulated plurality ofmeasurements (e.g., on the basis of an average and/or standard deviationdetermined from the accumulated plurality of measurements).

Another example involves predictive adjustments and, in particular,adjustments based on the determined absolute position of the side panelplacement and the target. When the vision system is capturing imagesbefore a downstream process, predictive adjustments can be made. As aspecific example, if the side panels on one side of the product begin toget short, all other parameters being substantially equal, the fasteneroverlap on the one side would also decrease. Since this side panel widthprior to the fastening module, the system can be programmed to steer theweb towards the one side with the shorter side panels. This would be apredictive or an anticipatory adjustment which would minimize theoverall loss in overlap on the one side.

Another example involves detecting fastener components of fasteningsystem 80 of the above-described training pants 20. As discussed above,it is desirable to control placement of a hook fastener component (e.g.,first fastening component 82 above of FIGS. 1–3 above) in the machinedirection (MD) relative to an associated side panel. In one embodiment,hook fastener placement is controlled by relative positioning of asignal from a proximity switch (e.g., an applicator proximity switch ona line shaft) located on a cut/place module, in connection with signalsfrom a pair of photoeye sensors (e.g., other inspection systems 1108)positioned to detect the side panels. A full product inspection machinevision system (e.g., one or more machine vision systems associated withcamera inspection system 1104) positioned downstream of the photoeyesensors can measure the absolute placement of the hook component on thetraining pant, in a manner similar to that described above with respectto measuring side panel longitudinal placement. With this information,information exchange 1110 (or another subsystem such as registrationsystem 1116) can determine a desired relative offset between a signalfrom the applicator proximity switch and the associated photoeye sensorand thereafter adjust the set point of the offset to maintain thedesired placement of the hook fastener.

Still another example involves manufacturing training pants 20 (FIG. 1).As described above, it is often desirable to locate one or more graphiccomponents on such training pants during manufacture. Certain graphics,such as a graphic waist band, are registered for placement relative toplacement of a pad component. Thus, graphics registration may becontrolled by a pad detection signal coupled with a graphics eyespotdetector (e.g., detected by a UV photoeye), by known methods. A fullproduct inspection system (e.g., such as a multiple camera system 1104)determines an absolute measurement of the graphic placement relative tothe pad. Based on this absolute measurement, information exchange 1110(or another subsystem such as registration system 1116) thereafterdetermines whether a set point adjustment is required based on therelative offset between the pad detection signal and the detectedgraphics eyespot. Thus, the full product inspection system provides aninput for controlling the registration of the graphics.

Also, and as described above, other examples include detecting theplacement of adhesives (e.g., determining where glue is positionedrelative to graphics, such as disappearing graphics, or the position ofglue used to hold elastic components to a final product).

FIGS. 7 and 8 are logic flow diagrams illustrating methods of providingreal time registration set point control, suitable for use in connectionwith an information system such as information system 1100 illustratedin FIG. 4A.

Referring first to FIG. 7, illustrated therein is a method 1300 forusing an inspection system to control registration of component parts ofcomposite products, such as components of disposable absorbent garments,including training pants 20. At blocks 1302 and 1304, first inspectionsystem detects and controls a placement of a first component of acomposite product. For example, as discussed above, a photosensor suchas a photoeye is positioned to detect and trigger a side panel cutlength, which may be regarded as a form of registration control(controlling the side panel length relative to the entire trainingpant). At block 1306, a second inspection sensor (e.g., a full productmachine vision system such as camera inspection system 1104 of FIG. 4Apositioned downstream from the first inspection sensor) detects anabsolute position of the first component. The second inspection sensorprovides a numerical value of the absolute position of the firstcomponent which, as illustrated at block 1308, is compared to a targetfor determining (block 1310) whether a set point change is desirable. Inone embodiment, a delay or deadband (block 1312) may be implemented(e.g., immediately after changing a set point). This delay may also beviewed as a filtering process, initiated in response to a machinetransition, to avoid the collection of transitional data that may occurwhile during such a machine transition.

Apart from set point changes, other machine transitions that caninitiate similar data filtering (e.g., deadband filtering) includesplice occurrences. For example, a machine indication that a rawmaterial splice is pending may be used to disregard collection ofinspection data during a particular time period (e.g., a periodimmediately following the machine transition or indication of thepending machine transition). As can be appreciated in view of theforegoing, such filtering on transitions is applicable to a variety ofthe data collection methods and systems disclosed herein. For example,deadband filtering may be used to limit data collection for use inproviding operator alarms and/or machine troubleshooting indications.

Using side panel longitudinal placement as an example, a photoeye (e.g.,one of the other inspection systems 1108 of FIG. 4A) is positioned todetect and control the longitudinal placement of side panel componentsof training pants manufactured during a production run. The photoeyeoperates at a controllable set point and provides a signal indicative ofa position of the leading edge of the side panel. A full product machinevision inspection system thereafter determines an absolute position ofthe side panel longitudinal placement. A plurality of these absolutemeasurements are accumulated (e.g., by information exchange 1110) andone or more mathematical characteristics, such as the average and/orstandard deviation of the plurality of measurements are there afterdetermined. The mathematical characteristics are thereafter compared toa target to determine if an adjustment to the set point of the photoeyeis required in order to maintain a desired degree of registration of theside panel longitudinal placement.

It should be understood that the foregoing example can be scaled toinclude detecting positions of two or more components and controllingregistration by controlling the position of one component relative toanother component, using a machine vision system. This is an area inwhich a machine vision inspection system provides certain advantages.For example, it is possible that a relative registration between firstand second component parts remains relatively steady (within acceptablebounds, and as measured by reference to a position of the sensor), butthe absolute registration of the two components on the full product isout-of-bounds. Hook longitudinal placement relative to a leading edge ofa side panel of a prefastened training pant provides an illustrativeexample. The hook may be placed by comparing a hook applicator proximityswitch signal to a side panel longitudinal placement photoeye signal.With a full product vision inspection system, it is possible to obtainan absolute measurement of the leading edge of hook to the leading edgeof the SBL, and thereafter adjust the proximity switch/photoeye systemoffset accordingly to obtain and/or maintain a desired spacing.

FIG. 8 is a logic flow diagram illustrating another method of providingreal time registration set point control, suitable for use in connectionwith an information system such as information system 1100 illustratedin FIG. 4A. At blocks 1352 and 1354, a placement of a first componentpart is detected. A signal is provided that indicates the placement ofthe first component. For example, a photosensor can be used to detect aplacement of a pad component of a training pant product duringmanufacture. At blocks 1356 and 1358, a placement of a second componentpart is detected and a signal is provided to indicate the placement ofthe second component (e.g., a UV photoeye detects a graphics eyespot onthe training pant during manufacture). At block 1360, an absoluteposition of the second component relative to the first is determined.For example, a full product inspection system can detect a position ofthe graphics on the training pant and the position of the pad. At blocks1362 and 1364, this absolute measurement is compared to a target so thata set point adjustment can be made with respect to placement of one orboth components (e.g., adjusting a set point so that the graphics arepositioned at a correct position relative to the pad). In oneembodiment, a delay or deadband (block 1366) is implemented immediatelyafter changing a set point. This helps to avoid the collection oftransitional data that occurs while the process shifts from one setpoint to another. As already explained herein, it may be preferable toaccumulate a plurality of absolute measurements associated with aplurality of composite products (e.g., 50) and compare an average and/orstandard deviation of the plurality of measurements to a target. Itshould be understood that such an approach will help reduce thepossibility of spurious erroneous results being used to adjustregistration set points.

It should be appreciated that the desired set point adjustment can bedetermined by, for example, the information exchange, the inspectionsystem, or the registration control system.

Web Guiding

FIG. 9 illustrates one embodiment of a web guiding system (indicatedgenerally as 1400 in FIG. 9), suitable for use in connection with aninformation system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A. For ease ofunderstanding, FIG. 9 will be described in terms of a web guiding systemfor use in controlling an amount of overlap between fastening components82, 84 of fastening system 80, associated with side panel components 34,134 of a pre-assembled training pant 20.

A product 1402, including fastening system 80 is inspected by a camerainspection system 1404. The camera inspection system 1404 can be part ofmultiple camera inspection system 1104 (FIG. 4A), or can be a separatesystem. In one embodiment, camera inspection system 1404 comprises amachine vision inspection system (e.g., a Cognex series 8210 processor,running Checkpoint® III software). In the illustrated exemplaryembodiment, camera inspection system 1404 is positioned to detect anamount of overlap between fastening components 82, 84 of fasteningsystem 80 after an assembly. This may be described as inspecting avisual image of two web components to determine the placement of thecomponents relative to one another. In one embodiment, camera inspectionsystem 1404 captures images of the overlap between fastening components82, 84 for every training pant produced during a production run, andfrom two aspects—a left side and a right side. The joinder of fasteningcomponents 82, 84 actually occurs downstream from a conveyor system1406. By steering conveyor system 1406 (e.g., using drive system 1408),it is possible to steer the product prior to and into the fasteningprocess (which, in this example, cannot be steered). As noted below, itis also contemplated that one embodiment would steer the fasteningprocess to the product.

FIG. 9 also illustrates information exchange 1110 and a network(communication network 1124) for facilitating communications betweencamera inspection system 1404, information exchange 1110, drive system1408, and conveyor 1406. It should be understood that other means forfacilitating communications between these subsystems can be employed,including direct connections or multiple communication networks orcombinations thereof.

In operation, camera inspection system 1404 automatically inspects eachtraining pant produced during a production run (or a sample set oftraining pants produced during the run) to detect an amount of overlapbetween fastening components 82, 84. In one embodiment, camerainspection system 1404 captures images of fastening system 80 from twosides of the product (referred to as a “left side” or “right side”, or a“drive side” and an “operator side”). FIGS. 10A–10D schematicallyillustrate fastening system 80 in this regard. In particular, FIG. 10Aillustrates fastening components 82, 84 unfastened. FIG. 10B illustratesan overlap between fastening components 82, 84, viewed from a right sideof the product. FIG. 10C illustrates the overlap between fasteningcomponents 82, 84, viewed from a left side of the product. FIG. 10Dillustrates a completed product 20 for context.

In one embodiment, fastener overlap on the right side of the product isinspected by lighting the seam from the inside of the training pant andtaking a picture/image with a camera located on the outside of thetraining pant. A substantially similar process occurs with the fasteneroverlap on the left side of the product (e.g., using a separate cameraand light). In this embodiment, rather than using two inspection systemsto inspect the images of the right and left side fastener overlapsseparately, an image combiner places the two images on the same monitorscreen (e.g., side by side). In this regard, the combined images may beviewed as a form of a composite image. Is it also possible to overlaythe images.

Camera inspection system 1404 publishes an inspection parameter (e.g., anumerical value) indicative of the detected amount of overlap offastening components 82, 84 (e.g., based on machine vision tools whichare generally understood in the art). Thereafter, information exchange1110 uses the inspection parameter data to determine whether theposition of conveyor 1406 should be adjusted. For example, in oneembodiment, information exchange 1110 accumulates a plurality ofinspection parameters associated with a plurality of products produced(i.e., a plurality of composite webs formed by the joinder of fasteningcomponents 82, 84 of releasable fastening system 80). Informationexchange 1110 determines a mathematical characteristic (e.g., an averageand/or standard deviation) of the accumulated plurality of inspectionparameters. The mathematical characteristic is compared to a target(e.g., an acceptability value/range of values) to determine whetherdrive system 1408 should adjust the position of conveyor 1406 to achievea more desirable amount of overlap between fastening components 82, 84on future products produced.

In one embodiment, information exchange 1110 provides the mathematicalcharacteristic data for use by drive system 1408. Drive system 1408thereafter compares the mathematical characteristic to target data todetermine an amount (if any) to adjust conveyor 1406 (e.g., in across-direction) so that the desired amount of overlap between the twofastening components 82, 84 is achieved. In another embodiment,information exchange 1110 determines an amount that conveyor 1406 shouldbe adjusted and provides an adjustment parameter to drive system 1408for adjusting conveyor 1406.

FIG. 11 illustrates another exemplary embodiment of a web guiding system(indicated generally as 1450 in FIG. 11), suitable for use in connectionwith an information system such as that illustrated in FIG. 4A. System1450 is illustrated in the context of an aspect of a manufacturingprocess in which first and second web components 1452, 1454 are providedon separate feed systems (e.g., conveyors) and processed (e.g., ajoinder process 1456 such as a lamination process or a cutting process)to form a composite product or product component 1458. In theillustrated example, a first web guide 1460 steers web component 1452based on a sensor (i.e., a web guide sensor) associated with web guide1460 that is designed to detect the edge(s) of web components.Similarly, a second web guide 1462 steers web component 1454 based on asensor associated with web guide 1462 that is designed to detect theedge(s) of web components. Such sensors are generally referred to asedge detectors (e.g., ultrasonic or light bar detectors), and they arelocated in close proximity to the associated web guide and provide a webedge detection signal to the web guide. Fife Corporation of OklahomaCity, Okla., provides such sensors and web guide equipment, includingpart no. 85427-002.

An operational example further illustrates the advantages of web guidingsystem 1400. Disposable diapers and training pants often include a webof “surge material” that is designed to rapidly intake dischargedexudates to prevent leaking outside of the garment. Such surge materialis added as a continuous web of material during the manufacturingprocess. If a typical prior art web guide with an edge detector is usedto guide the web of surge material into a cut and place process on themanufacturing line, there is no feedback of the placement of the surgematerial (e.g., in the cross direction) on the downstream web. Adownstream vision system, such as camera inspection system 1404,provides feedback of the actual placement of the surge material afterthe cut and place operation so cross direction errors can be corrected.This can be done automatically by moving the guide, by physically movingthe guide point (e.g., by way of a mechanically operated microslide orthe like), or by moving the guide point electronically inside the sensor(e.g., by adjusting an electrical offset).

Preferably, one or both web guide sensors are mechanically and/orelectronically adjustable. For example, a mechanically adjustable webguide sensor preferably includes a capability to have its positionmechanically translatable. Likewise, an electronically adjustable webguide sensor preferable includes a capability to have its operating setpoint be adjusted (e.g., via a message/signal over communication network1124).

After the joinder process 1456, a camera inspection system 1464 inspectsthe composite web 1458 to detect an alignment between components 1452,1454 based on one or more captured images of composite web 1458.Preferably, the camera inspection system 1456 is part of multiple camerainspection system 1104 (FIG. 4A); but it can be a distinct system. Inone embodiment, camera inspection system 1456 comprises a machine visioninspection system, such as a Cognex 8120 processor running Checkpoint®III software, available from Cognex Corporation. Camera inspectionsystem 1464 communicates with a drive system 1468 for controlling one orboth feed systems supplying the first and second web components 1452,1454 to adjust a placement of guides 1460 and 1462 to achieve a bestalignment of the individual webs in composite web 1458. In theillustrated example, web guides 1460, 1462, camera inspection system1464, drive system 1468, and information exchange 1110 communicate on aninformation/communication network, such as communication network 1124.Other communication schemes are possible.

The web guiding system 1450 illustrated in FIG. 11 will be furtherdescribed in terms of operational control examples. A first example isgenerally referred to as a direct control example. In the first example,web guide 1460 and its associated edge detector generally guide firstweb component 1452 as it is fed into joinder process 1456. Similarly,web guide 1462 and its associated edge detector generally guide secondweb component 1454 as it is fed into joinder process 1456 to formcomposite web 1458. In this example, camera inspection system 1456comprises a machine vision system capable of detecting grayscaledifferences indicative of the placement of first and second webcomponents 1452, 1454 to determine the alignment of such componentsafter the joinder process. Camera inspection system 1456 is preferablyconfigured and arranged to periodically inspect composite web 1458. Forexample, when manufacturing training pants 20, such as those describedabove in connection with FIGS. 1–3, camera inspection system 1456,composite web 1458 corresponds to a plurality of training pants, priorto a cutting stage. Thus, camera inspection system 1456 is configured toinspect each training pant 20 as it is being manufactured at a pointafter joinder process 1456.

Camera inspection system 1464 provides an inspection parameter thatindicates the determined relative placement (e.g., alignment) of firstand second web components 1452, 1454. Information exchange 1110 obtainsthe inspection parameter. If the inspection parameter indicates that oneof the web components 1452, 1454 is out of alignment, drive system 1468selectively steers the affected feed system (e.g., a conveyor) in adirection calculated to bring the affected web component back into aproper level of alignment.

Preferably, information exchange 1110 accumulates a plurality ofinspection parameters corresponding to a plurality of productsinspected. Information exchange 1110 then calculates a pertinentmathematical characteristic of the accumulated plurality of inspectionparameters, such as, for example, an average and/or standard deviation.As a further example, information exchange 1110 accumulates the fiftymost recently published inspection parameters and calculates anaverage/standard deviation, and repeats this process throughout aproduction run for each group of fifty inspection parameters published.The mathematical characteristic data is compared to one or more targetsto determine whether the position of the first or second web componentneeds to be adjusted. In one embodiment, information exchange 1110provides the average and standard deviation information to drive system1468, and drive system 1468 determines whether a change is needed. Inanother embodiment, information exchange 1110 determines the need for achange and provides an indication to drive system 1468 as to how much ofa change to make. It should be further understood that informationexchange 1110 and drive system 1468 can share a common computer systemfor processing purposes.

A second operational example directed to FIG. 11 involves using camerainspection system 1464 as part of an outer control loop for controllingone or both web guides 1460, 1462. In this way, web guides 1460, 1462provide pre-joinder web alignment control to maintain short termcontrol. The outer control loop provides long-term control. Morespecifically, camera inspection system 1464 captures images of compositeweb 1458 (e.g., corresponding to each product produced or a statisticalsample thereof). Inspection system 1464 detects the alignment/placementof the components of the composite web and publishes an inspectionparameter accordingly. Information exchange 1110 accumulates a pluralityof published inspection parameters and determines a mathematicalcharacteristic of the accumulated plurality. In one embodiment, thedetermined mathematical characteristic comprises an average and/orstandard deviation. The determined mathematical characteristic iscompared to a target to determine whether the detectedalignment/placement of the component parts of composite web 1458 isacceptable. If the difference between the detected placement and thetarget is unacceptable, it is next determined which component is out ofalignment. Based on this latter determination, drive system 1468 adjustsa position of web guide 1460 and/or 1462 such that the alignment of thecomponent parts of composite web 1458 returns to an acceptable level.Such adjustment may include, for example, mechanically and/orelectrically adjusting a sensor associated with one or both of webguides 1460, 1462.

One particular operating example involves adjusting a web guide positionusing guides mounted on movable slides or arms (e.g., mechanicallytranslatable). In this example, drive system 1468 adjusts the positionof a rod on which web guide 1460 and/or web guide 1462 is mounted. Thedetermination of which web guide, which web component and/or which webto move can be determined by a logic filter such as a filter formeasuring the placement of each web or web component relative to a thirdcomponent or a fixed point in the field of view of the inspecting camera(1464). Another example involves adjusting the hook placement relativeto the outside edge of the side panel location. The hook web can beautomatically adjusted by using a logic filter to steer a guide thatfeeds the hook into a cut and place module. As a further example, thelogic filter may determine whether the first web component 1452 onlyshould be selectively adjusted by adjusting guide 1460, whether thesecond web component 1454 only should be selectively adjusted byadjusting guide 1462 or whether both the first and second web components1452 and 1454 should be simultaneously selectively adjusted by adjustingboth guides 1460 and 1462. In this example, the drive system 1468 wouldbe responsive to the logic filter to implement the determination of thelogic filter.

In one preferred embodiment, information exchange 1110 provides anaverage and standard deviation of the plurality of inspection parametersto drive system 1468. Drive system 1468 compares one or both of thesevalues to a target(s). Based on this comparison, drive system 1468determines whether and by how much to adjust a position of one or bothweb guides 1460, 1462. It should be appreciated that informationexchange 1464 can be configured to compare the determined mathematicalcharacteristic to the target and to determine which web guide to adjustand by how much.

Also, if the mathematical characteristic deviates from the target to thepoint that an erroneous signal is suspected and/or web guiding errorsare very large, drive system 1468 can be programmed to trigger a“blow-off” to clean any lint or other obscuring particles that may haveaccumulated on a web guide sensor.

One advantage of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 11 is that machinevision systems are used to detect discrete and/or integral componentplacements and/or irregular edges that conventional web guides and webedge detector systems cannot detect. Also, the inspection system neednot be located near the point of web control (e.g., near the webguides). For example, typical web guides with light bar or ultrasonicedge detectors do not accurately detect component placement in compositewebs when the components are of similar densities, have similar lighttransmittance characteristics, or edges that are internal to a productsuch as edges in a closed portion of a training pant.

Similarly, typical edge detector web guiding systems may not be suitablefor use with webs having irregular edges and/or “C-folding” edges wherethe web rolls over on itself. Traditional prior art web guides simplyguide off of the folded edge, which can potentially place a component inan incorrect location. With a machine vision system as the detector(rather than or in addition to a typical edge detector), web widthmeasurements are possible. It should now be appreciated that web widthwill change significantly if the web C-folds. In such a circumstance,the machine vision system can trigger a warning such as provide an alarmand/or effect automatic machine shutdown that may not have beentriggered by an edge detector. For example, the drive system may includesoftware which is a monitoring subsystem which monitors a parameter,such as width, of the composite web. The software would compare themonitored parameter to a preset range, which range would excludeC-folds. The software would provides an indication when the monitoredwidth is outside the preset range (e.g., a monitored width below therange may correspond to a C-fold condition), wherein the indication isan alarm or a command to effect a shutdown of the web guiding system.

For example, composite web products, including disposable absorbentgarments such as training pants, may require components having die cutouts with one or more angled edges. Typical edge detectors used with webguides do not adequately detect discontinuous web edges/components. Aphotoeye can be placed to detect the edge, but if the web moves in thecross direction a photoeye detecting scheme can lead to an incorrectconclusion that the die cuts (as opposed to the moving web) are out ofposition, possibly resulting in an incorrect adjustment. This problemoccurs because the measurement is relative to the fixed position of thephotoeye. A machine vision system used as part of a camera inspectionsystem—such as system 1104 (FIG. 4A), system 1404 (FIG. 9), or system1464 (FIG. 11—can measure an absolute position of the die cut relativeto its associated product component, instead of relative to the fixedsensor (e.g., photoeye) position. As an example, infant diaperstypically include two fasteners, which may comprise a pair hook and loopfastener systems positioned on opposite sides of the diaper. Thesefasteners typically have an ear portion with a finger tab area. In onemanufacturing process, these “diaper ears” are provided from a roll ofmaterial that is die cut to form the ears. A camera vision systempositioned immediately downstream from the die cutter can inspect thewidth of irregular edges to ensure that the ears are cut correctly(e.g., to the middle). Such a camera vision system (or another visionsystem) can be positioned before the die cutter as well to provide webguiding improvements before the die cutting operation.

Referring still to FIG. 11, it should be appreciated that a web guidingsystem, such as system 1450, can be configured to adjust the position ofthe web to be guided (e.g., first web component 1452) by reference to avariety of reference points. For example, web guide 1460 can beconfigured to adjust the position of first web component 1452 byreference to a reference point. Such a reference point can be a fixedpoint (e.g. a mounting associated with web guide 1460), a referencepoint associated with the web being guided (e.g., a position of periodicreference mark placed on first web component 1452, as detected byinspection system 1464), and so on. Similarly, web guiding can occur byreference to multiple reference points, or by adjusting the position ofone web component (e.g., second web component 1454) relative to aposition of another web component (e.g., first web component 1452).Other references are possible.

One of the advantages of aspects of the systems and methods of thepresent disclosure is the ability to steer a web relative to adownstream inspection. In typical prior art systems, the web detectorand web guide need to be located relatively close to one another tooperate effectively to provide short term control. By using visionsystem information, it is possible to locate a sensor at a greaterdistance from the web guide and still maintain adequate long term webalignment control. Also, one sensor/camera system can detect theplacement of multiple components and, as such, can control multiplewebs. Further, using machine vision systems for web guiding allows websteering based on product (or process) attributes, as opposed to guidingto a sensor placement. In the context of prefastened training pants suchattributes include, for example, die cut out placement and fasteneroverlap. In general, the drive system adjusts the position of the feedsystem at a particular point along the path and the vision inspectionsystem captures an image at a particular point along the path which isdownstream from the particular point along the path at which the drivesystem adjusts the position of the feed system.

Alternatively, it is also contemplated that the drive system adjusts theposition of the feed system at a particular point along the path and thevision inspection system captures an image at a particular point alongthe path which is upstream of the particular point along the path atwhich the drive system adjusts the position of the feed system. Forexample, it is contemplated that a fastening process may be steeredaccording to a product. Parts of the fastening process may be movedtowards or away from the process centerline. If one side is at targetand the other side is away from target, fold fingers on the non-targetside may be moved to bring that side to target.

In addition, depending on the next, downstream process which willreceive the web, it may be advantageous to guide the web according to aparameter of the next process. For example, a web may be guided into ajoining process in which case a parameter related to joined parts may beused to guide the web. As other examples, a web may be guided into acutting, folding or fastening process so that a cut, a fold or afastened component or components, respectively, may be used to guide theweb.

Further, disposable absorbent garments, including training pants 20, arecommonly formed from composite webs of material, formed fromspunbond/poly laminates. Traditional web guides and detectors can beused to control the delivery of each component, but they do not providecontrol over the placement of the resulting composite web. A machinevision system, however, can capture one or more images of the compositeweb (e.g., composite web 1458) and, using grayscale differences, detectdifferent edges of the spunbond and the poly to determine properalignment in the composite web. Thus, having a downstream machine visionsystem (e.g., a full product inspection system) provides distinctadvantages over the prior art.

Information Display, Alarming, and Trouble Shooting

Referring again to FIG. 4A, in another aspect, information system 1110is useful as a system for providing information to an operatorassociated with production line 1102. For example, information regardinginspection data can be displayed to the operator on operator interface1118. Such information includes indications of the values of propertiesof the various components and aspects inspected by inspection system1104 (e.g., an amount of overlap between fastening components 82, 84 ofa training pant), an alarm indication when an inspected property fallsoutside of a desired limit or is trending toward a limit or otherwiserequires the operator's attention, a troubleshooting indicationprompting the operator to correct a detected problem (or that anautomatic troubleshooting correction has taken place), and so on. Such asystem allows the operator to react earlier than prior art systems andreduces the occurrence of automatic culls or other waste and delay.Similarly, when an automatic cull occurs, the operator is better able todetermine exactly what measurement likely caused the cull.

In one embodiment, operator interface 1118 comprises a personal computeroperating pursuant to a commercially available operating system such asMicrosoft® Windows NT, and running one or more of a bundle of industrialand process information software applications such as Wonderware®Factory Suite™ 2000, available from Wonderware Corporation. Such anindustrial and process information application preferably provides oneor more of the following capabilities: display of process informationsuch as inspection data (including information derived from inspectiondata), compare process information data to targets, real time relationaldatabase capabilities, and so on.

An operational description directed to inspecting an amount ofhook-to-loop overlap between fastening components 82, 84 of fasteningsystem 80 of a child's training pant 20 is instructive (FIGS. 10A–10Dillustrate schematically such a fastening system). Inspection system1104 (e.g., a machine vision system) inspects each training pantproduced during a production run to identify an amount of overlapbetween fastening components 82, 84. Periodically, inspection system1104 publishes an inspection parameter indicative of a characteristic ofthe inspected component—in this example, an amount of overlap detected.Information exchange 1110 obtains the published inspection parametersand, based thereon, provides a process display parameter for use byoperator interface 1118. In one embodiment, information exchange 1110accumulates a plurality of published inspection parameters correspondingto a plurality of training pants produced during a segment of a theproduction run (e.g., every 50 training pants produced). In such anembodiment, information exchange preferably computes a mathematicalcharacteristic (e.g., an average and/or standard deviation) of theaccumulated plurality of inspection parameters, such that the processdisplay parameter corresponds to the mathematical characteristic.

Advantageously, the process display parameter, which is related to theinspected characteristic, is useful in a variety of ways. For example,with this information, operator interface 1118 can display a numericand/or graphic of the inspected characteristic. More specifically,operator interface 1118 can display an indication of the inspectedcharacteristic relative to a target such as, for example, a range ofacceptable values or a trend line or a box-whisker plot. With thisinformation, the operator can anticipate when a problem might occur andtake corrective steps to avoid the problem.

Preferably, information exchange 1110 filters the information itreceives from inspection system 1104. For example, and as discussedabove, certain machine vision inspection systems rely on tools fordetermining positions of components within a captured image. If aninspection failure occurs, the vision system preferably provides anindication of the failure, in which case information exchange 1110 candisregard non-trustworthy inspection data associated with inspectionfailures. Information exchange 1110 may also filter incoming informationto determine if the information is so far out-of-bounds as to beuntrustworthy. Such untrustworthy information can be discarded and/orused to determine if the inspection system requires attention. It shouldbe understood, that such filtering can also be accomplished by operatorinterface 1118, with information exchange 1110 simply passing unfiltereddata.

It is also possible to display indications of a plurality of inspectedcomponents—using inspection system 1104 or multiple inspection systems.In some circumstances, it is desirable to correlate the informationregarding the various inspected components (e.g., to a particulartraining pant produced or to a group of training pants produced insequence) so that relationships between components can be monitored.Similarly, display indications can be grouped according to variouscriteria such as, for example, by inspection device (or location) and/orby the component being inspected. These types of groupings would havebenefits in troubleshooting problems. Other display grouping criteriainclude grouping by a particular operational needs or events, such asgrouping information based on an automatic cull event or when a newsupply of material is spliced into the production line.

As mentioned above, apart from displaying inspection-related data onoperator interface 1118, information system 1100 can also provide analarming system. For example, if the amount of overlap between fasteningcomponents 82, 84 exceeds a target threshold, an alarm is automaticallytriggered. In one embodiment, operator interface 1118 makes thisdetermination. But such a determination could occur elsewhere in system1110, most notably information exchange 1110. An alarm may simplycomprise a particular indication on operator interface 1118 (e.g., aflashing number or graphic, a change in size or color of a displayednumber or graphic, and so on). An alarm can also include a signal to analarming device 1130 associated with operator interface 1118. Alarmingdevices include, for example, sound devices (e.g., horns or buzzers),lights, and/or communication devices such as a pager, a computer, apersonal digital assistant, a mobile telephone, a regular telephone, andso on.

Information system 1110 can further provide automated trouble-shootingsupport capabilities. For example, in addition to (or rather than)providing alarm indications, information system 1110 can compareinspection data to target data to determine whether a corrective actionis required. The term corrective action is intended to includepreventative actions as well. In some cases, such as adjusting setpoints or blowing off dust on sensors, the corrective action ispreferably implemented automatically, without operator input. In othercases, a recommended corrective action is presented to an operator(e.g., a series of steps displayed on operator interface 1118). Stillfurther, the information system can be configured to track the number oftimes a particular corrective action has been recommended/initiated.

FIG. 12 is a schematic representation of an exemplary automatedtrouble-shooting system (referred to generally therein as system 1500).The example illustrated relates to inspecting prefastened, refastenabletraining pants, such as training pants 20 described above, but theprinciples disclosed herein are applicable to the manufacture of a muchbroader range of products. In this example, a multiple camera inspectionsystem (e.g., system 1104 of FIG. 4A) comprises three or more machinevision inspection systems positioned at various points in themanufacturing process. A first machine vision system 1502 is positionedto inspect a composite web of material 1504 on a product assemblyconveyor. The composite web of material 1504 is formed by aforming/joinder process (e.g., a lamination process) 1506 carried out ontwo supplied web components 1508, 1510, such as that described withrespect to system 1450 in FIG. 11. In one embodiment, the first machinevision system 1502 is referred to as a Product Assembly Conveyor (“PAC”)linescan inspection system because it uses a vision camera mounted nearthe conveyor where the product is assembled. In this location, visionsystem 1502 is positioned to acquire images of each product beingproduced before the addition of an outer cover assembly.

A second machine vision system 1512 is positioned to inspect eachtraining pant produced at a position 1514 after fastening system 80 isadded to the side panels of each training pant by a fastening systemapplication process 1516. In this context, the second machine visionsystem 1512 may also be referred to as a full product inspection system1512. FIG. 12 schematically illustrates the supply of fasteningcomponents by reference character 1518. After the fastening systemapplication process 1516, the web of products proceeds to a fasteningengagement process 1519 where the fastening components are engaged toform a prefastened product. A third machine vision system 1520 ispositioned downstream of the fastening engagement process 1519 and isreferred to as an assembled fastening system inspection system 1519 or afastening seam inspection system because it inspects the fastening seamof the completed training pants 1522 after fastening engagement process1519.

Preferably, machine vision systems 1502, 1512, and 1520 communicate withinformation exchange 1110 and/or operator interface 1118 via acommunication network such as network 1124. Other forms ofdata/information transfer are also possible, such as dedicated lines ordaisy chained communications.

In general, machine vision systems 1502, 1512, and 1520 publishinspection data, such as that already described herein relating to theinspected components of each training pant 1522 produced, for use byinformation exchange 1110. In this context, information exchange 1110comprises a logic system that accumulates inspection data (e.g., fromthe fifty most recently inspected products) from machine vision systems1502, 1512, and 1520 and determines an average and standard deviationcalculation of the accumulated data. The average and/or standarddeviation data is thereafter incorporated into a spreadsheet (e.g.,Microsoft® Excel) where a series of logic statements sort theinformation (e.g., by comparing the average and/or standard deviationdata to reference target values), to produce recommended correctiveaction(s), if necessary. The recommended corrective action(s) can bedisplayed to an operator on operator interface 1118 and/or automaticallyperformed. For example, for some problems, the corrective actionincludes a series of steps to be performed by the operator or anothertechnician. For other problems, the corrective action can beautomatically initiated (e.g., initiating a blow off procedure to cleana photodetector). If the logic recommends multiple corrective actions,the logic preferably organizes the recommended actions to prioritize theorder in which the actions are displayed to the operator and/orimplemented automatically. It should be understood that informationexchange 1110 can also be configured to simply pass inspection data(e.g., “raw” data, or averages and standard deviations based onaccumulated data) information to operator interface 1118. In such acase, operator interface 1118 preferably incorporates the logic systemfunctionality. It should further be understood that the logic functionsmay be implemented directly in dedicated software.

For example, in one embodiment, it is contemplated that a Visual Basic(VB) application program may be used to read data from the reflectivememory network, compute an average and standard deviation, and thenpublish the summary statistics back out to the reflective memory. Thesummary statistics would then be available for display, such as byWonderware® Factory Suite™ 2000, available from Wonderware Corporation,or available for analysis by a logic routine. In this embodiment, the VBapplication program may perform the functions performed by the DLL filesnoted herein.

The foregoing description, focusing on a spreadsheet-based approach isprovided for exemplary purposes only. In one embodiment, rather thanusing a commercially available spreadsheet, a logic program is used. Forexample, and as described above, such a logic program can be written inRSLogix™ 5000 software and run on a SoftLogix™ PC platform withininformation exchange 1110. A dynamic link library (DLL) file (e.g., in Clanguage) retrieves inspection data from network 1124 (e.g., areflective memory network) and places the retrieved data into a dataarray. Another C language DLL performs mathematical manipulations, asdesired, on the data array. For example, in one embodiment a DLLperforms statistical calculations on the data array such as determiningaverages and standard deviations. Thereafter, the RSLogix™ program usesthe statistical information to perform the desired functions (e.g.,determining quality by comparing the statistical information to atarget, determining an alarm conditions, determining process settingchanges, and so on), in accordance with the present disclosure, so thatrecommended actions can be published to the machine operator and/orautomatic commands may be sent to the machine to make a change.

Referring still to FIG. 12, in one exemplary operational scenario,joinder process 1506 is a lamination process for laminating webcomponent 1510 to web component 1508 to form composite web 1504. Machinevision system 1502 periodically captures images of composite web 1504corresponding to substantially a training pants being produced during aproduction run (e.g., a given time period during a production cycle).Machine vision system 1502 determines the placement of web component1510 relative to web component 1508 based on grayscale differences inthe captured images. Information exchange 1110 accumulates theinspection data published by machine vision system 1502 (e.g., for thefifty most recent inspections) and determines an average and standarddeviation of the accumulated data. The average and standard deviationdata are stored in the data array and logic statements determine whethercomponent 1510 is positioned correctly relative to component 1508 bycomparing one or both of the average and standard deviation values to atarget reference. If the logic determines that the alignment ofcomponents 1510 relative to 1508 is unacceptable, the logic willrecommend an adjustment of a position of component 1510 prior to joinderprocess 1506 (e.g., by a directing a web guide change or by directing asteering correction of a conveyor supplying component 1510). The logicmakes this recommendation because it is programmed to know thatcomponent 1510 is applied to component 1508 and it is normallypreferable to move the object being attached (in this case 1510) to a“base” component (in this case 1508). Advantageously, by recommending aproper order of corrective actions prevents an operator from “tailchasing” and reduces the likelihood that a corrective action merelyfixes a symptom rather than a source of a problem.

With the benefit of the present disclosure, it should be understood thatthere exist a number of ways to identify a recommended correctiveaction. Three exemplary approaches will now be described. A firstapproach uses the calculated averages of accumulated inspection data.The averages are imported into a spreadsheet and logic statementscompare the averages to target values and associated tolerance range(s).Based on a difference between an average and a target, the logic isprogrammed to recommend and/or initiate a corrective action. With suchan approach, a single item of inspection data that is out of boundswould not trigger a corrective action because the use of averages tendsto smooth out spurious occurrences. A second approach for identifyingrecommended corrective actions uses a “percent defective” determinationbased on both the calculated averages and standard deviations of theaccumulated inspection data from the relevant machine vision system(s).Thus, the logic compares the actual percent defective in a given sample(e.g., the fifty most recent inspections) to a target percent defectiveto determine if and where any corrective action is required.

A third approach for identifying corrective recommended correctiveactions compares both the average and standard deviation against theirrespective targets. The average deviating from its target may indicatethat a different corrective action is required than if the standarddeviation deviates from its target, or that a different correctiveaction is required than if both numbers deviate from their targets. Forexample, referring to the previously discussed example of usingphotoeyes to detect pant spacing after the final cut off, a highstandard deviation of spacing may signify a belt slip issue while a highor low average spacing can signify that a process change (perhapsmachine draw) needs to be made.

It should also be understood that the systems and methods disclosedherein are not limited to using mathematical/statistical determinationsin the forms of averages, standard deviations, and percent detectives.With the benefit of the present disclosure, it is possible to chooseother mathematical/statistical calculations that will yield acceptableresults in a given application.

Both of these approaches provide advantages over the prior art. Forexample, with even a small number of inspection data points to monitor,it is difficult for a process operator to track such data as it is beingpresented, mentally process the information, determine whether acorrective action is needed, and then determine what corrective actionto take.

It should be appreciated that in one embodiment, information exchange1110 simply supplies inspection information (e.g., an average and/orstandard deviation of the fifty most recent measurements of the overlapbetween fastening components 82, 84) to operator interface 1118, andoperator interface 1118 compares that data to one or more targets anddetermines what to display and how to display it, whether an alarmcondition is triggered, whether to filter the data, whether atroubleshooting action is required, and so on. In another embodiment,however, information exchange 1110 makes one or more of the foregoingdeterminations and simply passes a parameter or command message tooperator interface 1118 which thereafter displays that which has beencommanded by information exchange 1110. Further, although it ispreferred that each product produced be inspected, the foregoingautomated trouble-shooting system can be effectively implemented using asampling set such as a set based on a statistical sampling plan.

FIGS. 13A and 13B are logic flow diagrams illustrating one method(indicated generally by reference 1550) of providing processinformation, suitable for use in connection with an information systemsuch as that illustrated in FIGS. 4 and/or 12. More specifically, FIG.13A illustrates, in logic flow format, a method for providing processinformation to an operator in real time. Such a method is suitable foruse in connection with a manufacturing production line producingcomposite products, such as disposable absorbent garments, from asequential addition of component parts. At block 1552, an inspectionsystem (or a plurality of inspection systems—such as those illustratedin FIG. 4 or 12) inspects one or more component aspects of disposableabsorbent garments produced during a production run. Thereafter, atblock 1554, the inspection system provides an inspection parameter thatindicates a characteristic of the inspected component. For example, ifthe inspection system is configured to inspect an amount of overlapbetween fastening components 82, 84 of training pants 20 produced duringa production run, the inspection system preferably provides a numericvalue of the amount of overlap detected in each training pant inspected.At blocks 1556, 1558 an information exchange (e.g., information exchange1110) obtains and stores the inspection parameters provided by theinspection system. As indicated at block 1558, in one embodiment, theinformation exchange computes an average and standard deviation of anaccumulated plurality of inspection parameters corresponding to aplurality of inspected products (e.g., the fifty most recently inspectedproducts).

Blocks 1557 and 1560 are intended to illustrate that inspection data maybe filtered at one or more points in the method, and based on variousfilter criteria. For example, in one embodiment the information exchangedisregards (or discounts) inspection parameters that fall outside of arange of acceptable values, indicating that the inspection parameter issuspect. Similarly, the information exchange can disregard inspectionparameter data if the inspection system indicates that an inspectionfailure relating to the data has occurred. In another embodiment, suchfiltering occurs elsewhere, such as at operator interface 1118.

At block 1562, one or more process display parameters are determinedbased on the inspection data. The process display parameter(s) indicateswhat information should be displayed to an operator, e.g., on operatorinterface 1118 (block 1564, 1566). Such information includes numericaland/or graphical indications of the inspection parameter, indications ofthe average and/or standard deviation of the accumulated plurality ofinspection parameters, comparisons to one or more targets, alarmindications and messages, trouble-shooting recommendations (e.g.,corrective actions and automated corrective responses), and so on. Inone embodiment, the process information display determines the processdisplay parameter. In another embodiment, operator interface 1118determines the process display parameter.

FIG. 13B further illustrates, in flow diagram form, exemplary methodsfor providing alarm and trouble-shooting indications (blocks 1570,1580). Referring first to providing alarm indications, at block 1572 theinspection data is compared to a target. This includes comparing theinspection parameters directly, as well as comparing information derivedtherefrom, including average and standard deviations and displayparameters. If the inspection data as compared to the target isunacceptable, an alarm condition is triggered at block 1574. Forexample, if a particular item of inspection data is trending toward alimit, the operator may be notified so that he/she can take correctiveaction before the limit is met.

Because the present method may be used in connection with a system thatinspects a large plurality of components, it is possible that multiplealarms will be triggered at or near the same time. Thus, at block 1576,the alarms are prioritized according to importance. For example, analarm indicating a critical failure would take priority over an alarmindicating that an item is trending toward a limit.

As another example, the system is programmed to prioritize alarms tocorrespond to the sequence of manufacturing steps involved in making theproduct. A more particular example involves alarming in connection withthe manufacture of prefastened training pants. In one embodiment of suchan example, alarming is based generally on the sequence of steps forconstructing a training pant. This approach translates into alarmingbased on the location of inspection points along the manufacturingprocess. More specifically, and still referring to the example ofprefastened training pants, fastening components 82, 84 of training pant20 are applied to side panels 34, 134. If both side panels 34, 134 andfastening components 82, 84 were misplaced, the alarms would beprioritized in order of unit operations in the pant manufacturingprocess. Thus, the alarm for the side panel 34, 134 placement would beprogrammed to have a higher priority than the alarm for fastenercomponent 82, 84 placement because side panels are applied earlier inthe pant construction process.

Still another example involving the manufacture of prefastened trainingpants is instructive at this point. To alarm for hook 84 cross direction(CD) placement relative to side panel 34, the program will have checked,in the following order: the separation of the inside edge of the sidepanel 34, the width of each of the side panels 34, and then the distancefrom the inside edge of the hook 84 to the outside edge of the sidepanel 34. Similarly, to alarm for hook 84 machine direction (MD)placement, the alarm program checks in the following order: MD placementof the side panels relative to the absorbent assembly 44, the MDplacement of the panels with respect to each other, the hook length, andfinally the hook MD placement relative to the edge of the side panel. Inthese cases, if all of these checks result in an indication of anerroneous placement, the program prioritizes the alarms to alarm thefirst failed check first and the last failed check last.

Block 1578 indicates that the alarm indications can take on any of anumber of forms. In a simple form, an alarm is simply an indication on adisplay associated with operator interface 1118. Other indicationsinclude audible alarms, flashing lights, and/or alarm messages sent toelectronic equipment such as telephones, mobile telephones, pagers,computers (e.g., email), and so on.

Referring still to FIG. 13B, block 1580 relates to a method of providingan automated trouble-shooting response. At block 1582, the inspectiondata is compared to a target. This can include comparing the inspectionparameters directly, as well as comparing information derived therefrom.Preferably, the comparison is done in either an information exchange(e.g., information exchange 1110) or an operator interface computer(e.g., operator interface 1118). If the comparison indicates an errorcondition (e.g., a misalignment of components), a corrective action isindicated to an operator, such as on a display associated with operatorinterface 1118 (block 1586). Alternatively, or in addition to displayinga corrective action, an automatic response, such as a machine set pointadjustment or a conveyor steering command, is triggered.

Providing troubleshooting responses and/or alarm indications may also beaccomplished by identifying relationships between inspection parametersand machine settings. For example, after inspecting an aspect of thecomposite product being constructed, one or more component attributesmay be automatically identified by the inspection system. The componentattribute is obtained by a system such as information exchange 1110 thatalso determines a machine setting associated with the constructionprocess. If the component attribute falls outside of acceptable limits(e.g., as determined at block 1582 of FIG. 13B), the informationexchange can identify the troubleshooting recommendation (see block 1584of FIG. 13B) as a function of an identified relationship between thecomponent attribute and the determined machine setting. Such acapability can be used to identify relationships between one componentattribute and one or more machine settings (including settings frommultiple machines), as well as between multiple component attributes andmultiple machine settings. For example, machine vacuum and/or blowoffsettings may be related to one or more inspected component attributes toidentify and/or isolate a troubleshooting action. Using refastenabletraining pants as an example, if a hook cut length problem is detected(e.g., at block 1582 of FIG. 13B), information exchange 1110 can checkto see if the associated vacuum setting is within an expected range.Thus, a relationship between the hook cut length problem and the vacuumset point can be identified to the operator and/or the vacuum settingcan be automatically adjusted in a direction determined to alleviate thedetected hook length problem.

FIG. 14 is a logic flow diagram illustrating one method (indicatedgenerally by reference 1600) of providing an automated trouble-shootingcapability, suitable for use in connection with an information systemsuch as that illustrated in FIGS. 4 and/or 12. In particular, the method1600 is suitable for use in connection with a manufacturing processhaving at least one machine operating at a set point and producingdisposable absorbent garments from a sequential addition of componentparts during a production run. At block 1602, an inspection system(e.g., one or more of the inspection systems illustrated and describedin connection with FIG. 4 or 12) inspects a first aspect ofsubstantially all of the garments being manufactured and provides afirst inspection parameter correlated to an inspected garment. Forexample, in FIG. 12, inspection system 1502 inspects a composite web1504 formed by the joinder of web components 1508, 1510 and detects ameasurement of the alignment of components 1508, 1510. At block 1604, asecond aspect of the product being produced is inspected and a secondinspection parameter is provided.

Using FIG. 12 again as an example, inspection system 1520 comprises afull product machine vision system for inspecting the finally assembledproduct, in this case a child's training pant (reference 1522 in FIG.12) having a refastenable fastening system 80 (see FIG. 1). Inspectionsystem 1520 preferably is capable of detecting a plurality ofpoints/characteristics of each training pant produced (or a statisticalsample set of each product produced). For example, inspection system1520 can inspect the final product 1522 to determine if the portion ofthat product formed from composite web 1504 is correctly aligned. Basedon the first and second inspection parameters, a logic system (e.g.,logic residing in either information exchange 1110, operator interface1118, or elsewhere) determines whether a corrective action is required.

Advantageously, by using inspection data from more than one inspectionsource, the logic can better pinpoint the source of possible problems.For example, if the inspection parameter(s) published by inspectionsystem 1502 (FIG. 12) relating to a given product (or group of products)does not indicate a misalignment with respect to components of compositeweb 1504, but inspection system 1520 detects an alignment error in thefinal product (or group of products), the logic system can determinethat the problem most likely occurred downstream from joinder process1506.

Referring still to FIG. 14, blocks 1608 and 1610 indicate that in oneembodiment, the “raw” inspection data is accumulated. Mathematicalcharacteristics of the accumulated data (e.g., averages and standarddeviations) are calculated and it is these mathematical characteristicsthat are analyzed by the logic system to determine whether a correctiveaction is required. It should be appreciated that the use of data from aplurality of inspection events reduces the likelihood that spuriouserrors and/or erroneous readings will trigger a corrective action. Itshould also be appreciated that the use of data from a plurality ofinspection events allows for alarming based on variability of inspectedevents, instead of or in addition to alarming based on deviation fromset point.

Once a corrective action is identified/triggered (block 1612), themethod proceeds to block 1614 and presents an indication of thecorrective action to an operator (e.g., on operator interface 1118)and/or initiates an automatic set point adjustment (e.g., steers aconveyor or adjusts a cutting process) at block 1616.

At this point, it is instructive to note that the information exchangeconcept disclosed and described herein provides a powerful innovation inthat it makes possible the ability to relate multiple data points toeach other, whether those data points originate from a single inspectionsystem, multiple inspection systems, or other manufacturing-relateddatabases (e.g., raw material data, waste/delay data, quality data,machine set point data, and/or registration data). Thus, while obtainingdata from multiple locations is possible, it is not critical. In otherwords, it is first important to obtain the desired data (e.g.,inspection data), and then important to process the obtained data pointsfor decision making purposes. In this regard, the information exchangefacilitates an expert system that is programmed to follow a logicalanalytical process (developed by human experts). Advantageously, the useof computer processors allows for the performance of the necessarycalculations, comparisons, and logical assessments on a large number ofdata points considerably faster than humanly possible.

Referring again to FIG. 12, an operational example based onmanufacturing training pants is described. In this example it is assumedthat it is desirable, from a quality perspective, to cull products inwhich the hook 84 is not placed within a preferred distance from an edgeof the side panel 34 near the leg edge of the training pant 20.Notifying an operator associated with the manufacture of the product ofthe proper corrective action may include processing information frommore than one inspection system. In the illustrated embodiment, a firstmachine vision system 1502 detects the placement of side panels 34 and134 with respect to some other component of the pant being constructed,such as, for example, absorbent assembly 44, and preferably from aplurality of inspection events. By using a plurality of inspectionevents, it is possible to obtain an average value (e.g., for the fiftymost recent inspection events). A second machine vision system 1512 ispositioned to inspect each training pant produced at a position 1514after fastening component 84 is added to the side panels (by fasteningsystem application process 1516). For instance, the second machinevision system 1512 detects a measurement of the length of fasteningcomponent 84 along the longitudinal axis 48. The same inspection system1512 can also be used to detect a position of fastening component 84relative to the edge of side panel material 34 at a position near theleg opening of the assembled pant. A third machine vision system 1520 ispositioned to measure the length along the longitudinal axis 48 of sidepanel 84. The measurements from one or more of these plurality ofinspection events at each inspection system (1502, 1512, and 1520) maybe passed to a computer system (e.g., information exchange 1110) capableof calculating averages and standard deviations of the accumulated data,comparing the calculated values to set points and/or quality limits todetermine a percent defective, and to determine if any of the fourmeasurements taken by the three inspection systems falls outside ofquality limits. In one embodiment, a logic system associated withinformation exchange 1110 prioritizes the above-noted four measurementsin the following order: (1) side panel machine direction (MD) placement;(2) fastening component (e.g., hook) length; (3) fastening component(hook) placement relative to side panel; and (4) front panel length. Ifside panel MD placement is incorrect, placement is phased in a directionselected to correct the MD placement. If MD placement is satisfactory,then the hook length is analyzed and corrected, if necessary. If thehook length is satisfactory, then the MD placement of the hook isanalyzed and, if incorrect, the alarming system could be triggered tosuggest a corrective action. If the hook MD placement is satisfactory,then the front panel length is analyzed. If this measurement isunsatisfactory, the product cut off section of the machine can be phased(either automatically and/or by notifying the operator of a correctiveaction) to correct that front panel length. If all four of these checks“pass,” the hook is considered placed correctly and the pant is notculled.

At this point, it is instructive to identify yet another example of thepower of the presently disclosed systems and methods to interrelate datafrom a variety of systems and information sources. Information frommultiple camera inspection systems (e.g., inspection system 1104 of FIG.4A) can be combined to automatically interpret the locations of variouscomponents of a composite product formed by the sequential addition ofcomponent parts, such as a child's training pant. One example of such acapability involves controlling placement of a final cut off, measuredas a length of an endseal, using information from three vision systems:(1) a product assembly conveyor vision system; (2) a full product visionsystem; and (3) a fastening vision system. The product assembly conveyorvision system can be used to control longitudinal placement of theleading edge of the side panel relative to the trailing edge of anabsorbent pad (see absorbent assembly 44 of FIGS. 1–3). This approachensures that the side panel is put in a correct longitudinal place onthe product being manufactured, in this case a training pant. Next, thefull product inspection system camera measures the longitudinal lengthfrom the leading edge of the side panel to the trailing edge of the sidepanel at the leg cut out. Third, the final cut off can be controlled bymeasuring the longitudinal length of the front panel at the fasteningvision system camera. Thus, knowing that the panel is the correct lengthand is in the correct location relative to the pad, it is possible toplace the final cut off in the right location, measured by the frontpanel length, and interpolate that the endseal is the correct length.Advantageously, in one embodiment information exchange 1110 performsthese calculations for displaying the relative measurements to anoperator. Also, because there is no practicable automatic method fordetecting endseal length directly, process information exchange 1110 canperform the mathematical calculations, based on the measured data, todetermine by inference whether the endseal needs to be moved. With thisinformation, the operator can make an adjustment, if necessary, or anautomatic adjustment may be triggered. In other words, the inspectionsystem 1104 detects the relative placement of first and secondcomponents and of second and third components. The information exchange1110 infers the relative placement of the first and third componentsfrom the relative placement of first and second components and from therelative placement of second and third components. The informationexchange 1110 uses the inferred relative placement of the first andthird components for guiding the first or third components.

The following are examples of inferring the placement of components andusing the inferred information for guiding system control or forcontrolling its operation. In a more general case, the inspection systemwould detect the relative placement of first and second components andof second and third components. In response, the information exchangesystem would infer the relative placement of the first and thirdcomponents from the relative placement of first and second componentsand of second and third components. The information exchange systemwould use the inferred relative place of the first and third componentsfor guiding the first or third components. In a specific case, anupstream vision camera detects a location of component 1 relative tocomponent 3 (both on web 1). After a joining process, a downstreamvision camera detects a location of component 2 relative to component 3.In this example, component 1 cannot be seen by the downstream camerabecause it is beneath component 2. However, the placement of component 1relative to component 2 is an attribute of interest. The system infersthe placement of component 1 relative to component 2 by performingmathematical operations on the vision system measurements provided bythe upstream and downstream cameras, e.g., by knowing the placement ofcomponent 1 relative to component 3, and component 2 relative tocomponent 3, the placement of component 1 relative to component 2 can beinferred.

It should be appreciated that the systems and methods disclosed herein,including those directed to information displaying, alarming, andtrouble-shooting, can be based on data associated with inspecting one ormore component parts associated with one or more products beingconstructed, as well as, data associated with inspecting multipleaspects of a single component part (e.g., using multiple vision systemsto check the placement of a component part).

It should further be appreciated from the foregoing examples thatalarming notifications and trouble-shooting/set point change actions(including those automated and those indicated to an operator on anoperator display) are preferably prioritized. For example, it ispreferable to provide alarm notifications in a logical order.Preferably, the order is chosen in terms of importance. One way toorganize alarms and/or trouble-shooting actions is by order ofoccurrence. More preferably, however, alarms and trouble-shootingactions are prioritized by logical importance in terms of theirrespective relationship to a most-likely root source of the conditionresulting in the alarm or trouble-shooting action. For example, if ameasurement anomaly is detected at multiple points during a high speedweb converting process, it may be preferable to prioritize any alarm ortrouble-shooting action in process order (i.e., the first detectionpoint being nearest a most-likely root source). Other logical priorityschemes may be advantageously employed with the benefit of the presentdisclosure.

Exemplary Displays

FIGS. 15–19A illustrate exemplary display information for display on anoperator interface associated with a manufacturing process. Theillustrated examples focus on manufacturing prefastened training pants,such as training pant 20 of FIGS. 1–3. FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplarydisplay screen based on the above-described Wonderware® Factory Suite™2000, available from Wonderware Corporation. As illustrated in FIG. 15,a display screen 2000 has been configured and arranged to correspond tofunctions associated with the manufacture of training pants 20.

Proceeding around the display screen 2000 in a generally clockwisefashion, displayed there on are a plurality of options for enabling theoperator to select the type of information for display. A full productinspection (FPI) option is indicated at 2002. In the illustratedexample, selecting the FPI option 2002 causes a display of inspectiondata from a full product inspection machine vision system (e.g., system1512 of FIG. 12). FIG. 19A illustrates an exemplary display of fullproduct inspection information of a fastening system associated with arefastenable child's training pants, as displayed on an operatorinterface. FIG. 19A provides an example of information displayed inconnection with FPI option 2002. The next option 2004 enables a displayof data relating to an applicator process, which will be discussed belowin connection with FIG. 20 and FIG. 21. Display option 2006 enables adisplay of PAC linescan measurements. In the present example, the PAClinescan inspection system (e.g., inspection system 1502 of FIG. 12)includes a camera located at a position before the outer cover of thetraining pant 20 is applied, and can detect component edges andplacement that would be hidden or otherwise more difficult to inspect bythe placement of the outer cover. Option 2008 enables a display of aninspection system for inspecting fastening system 80 (e.g., inspectionsystem 1520 of FIG. 12). Display option 2010 enables a display ofso-called “Insight” measurements. In particular, these measurementsrefer to measurements of a Cognex In-Sight® 3000 vision system, but areintended to be exemplary of the other inspection systems associated withthe overall information system. Display option 2012 enables a display of“quick check” data. The quick check display screen is preferablyconfigured to display certain critical values for the product inquestion. In this case, the quick check display is configured to displaymeasurements that trigger product culls. Also displayed may bemeasurements that most often (e.g., typically based on experience ordata analysis) require operator adjustments. Stated differently, thequick check display provides a convenient display of information thatwill often be of very high importance to an operator, such asinformation to help troubleshoot high cull occurrences. Advantageously,such a display screen saves time by reducing the number of displays anoperator needs to monitor (i.e., it displays information that may beavailable on other screens, in a single, highly organized manner).

Display option 2014 enables a display of troubleshooting recommendationsand/or actions. Display option 2016 enables a display of process alarmsand watch conditions. In FIG. 15, process alarm option 2016 is enabled.Other display options include, for example, an option 2018 to access aso-called PIPE database. In this example, the PIPE database stores datarelating to waste and delay.

Referring still to FIG. 15, in the illustrated embodiment, processalarms are grouped into two categories: process warnings 2020, andprocess watches 2022. In this example, process warnings are consideredto have greater relevance to the operator than process watches. Thus, itis appropriate to use colors to differentiate the two categories (e.g.,red for warnings and yellow for watches).

FIG. 16 illustrates an exemplary display of information associated withthe selection of the PAC linescan option 2006. In this example, the datarelates to a sample (batch) size of 50 inspected products. The averageand standard deviation of various measurements taken by the PAC linescaninspection system are displayed relative to a desired target value. FIG.17 illustrates an exemplary display of information associated with theselection of the quick check option 2012. FIG. 18 illustrates anexemplary display of information associated with the selection of thefastening inspection system option 2008. FIG. 19 illustrates anexemplary display of information associated with the selection of theInsight inspection option 2010.

Tracking Per Station Information on a Multiple Station Device

Referring now to FIG. 20, illustrated therein is a schematicrepresentation of a system (referred to generally by reference 2100) andmethod for tracking per station manufacturing information from amultiple station device. For example, commonly owned U.S. Pat. No.5,104,116 to Pohjola, discloses a multiple station device for rotatingand placing a strip of material on a substrate so that the strip is“surfacely placed” generally flat with a continuously moving surface.

It has been known in the prior art to track information from a pluralityof manufacturing stations, each station performing a different functionin the manufacturing process. It has been generally unknown, however, touse machine vision systems and an information exchange to track andrelate per station information from a multiple station device (sometimesreferred to herein as a multiple repeat application device) thatperforms the same function—e.g., a six station device that performs thesame function, sequentially using each of its six stations, on sixsequential products being manufactured.

One particular example of a multiple station device is a side panelapplicator used in manufacturing a disposable absorbent undergarment.Even more particularly, a side panel applicator 2102 uses twelve pucksmounted on a six-repeat applicator (two pucks per applicator station) toapply side panels to a product chassis, as generally described elsewhereherein. As also described herein, product (or process) attributeinformation, regarding each product being produced during a productionrun, is accumulated from various inspection systems (illustratedgenerally in FIG. 20 by reference 2104), including those illustratedelsewhere herein. This inspection data is available via network 1124(e.g., a Reflective Memory network). The remainder of the discussion ofFIG. 20 focuses primarily a discussion of particular examples. It shouldbe understood that this discussion is provided for exemplary purposesand should not be construed in a limiting sense.

As explained above, in the exemplary embodiment illustrated, applicator2102 is a six station device for applying side panels to the trainingpants. As shown in FIG. 20, station 1 of applicator 2102 applies a sidepanel for a first product A constructed during a portion of theproduction run. Station 2 of applicator 2102 applies a side panel to thenext (second) product—product B—constructed during the production run.This process continues so that station 6 of applicator 2102 applies aside panel to the sixth product constructed in the sequence—product F.The process thereafter continues such that station 1 of applicator 2102applies a side panel to the seventh product constructed in thesequence—product G. In other words, each product is identified by anidentifier, in this example an upper case letter indicating its positionin the manufacturing sequence and a number indicating which station ofapplicator 2102 applied the side panel to that product.

Inspection system 2104 images each product being produced (or a sampleset thereof) and determines, for example, a measurement of side panelskew. The inspection data is accumulated and stored in a series of datacollection/summary buffers 2110, which can be incorporated intoinformation exchange 1110. As illustrated in the following TABLE 1, eachbuffer corresponds to a specific station of applicator 2102.

TABLE 1 Buffer 1 Buffer 2 Buffer 3 Buffer 4 Buffer 5 Buffer 6(Station 1) (Station 2) (Station 3) (Station 4) (Station 5) (Station 6)A B C D E F G H I J K L M N

Advantageously, therefore, the information (in this case inspectiondata) is now correlated to a particular station of the multi-stationdevice 2102. Thus, problems (e.g., regarding quality, registration, andso on) can be pinpointed to an exact station. For example, informationin each buffer can be displayed directly and/or mathematicalmanipulations of accumulations of such data can be displayed.

It is also contemplated that the same collected inspection data may beused to draw different conclusions. For example, the same informationcould be stored in buffers of different sizes to draw differentconclusions for alarming and/or troubleshooting. As a specific example,the information from the side panel applicator system could be splitinto two buffers and related to the two repeat cut-off that is part ofthe applicator system. Alternatively or in addition, the informationcould be split into six buffers which would identify problems with aspecific applicator station. Another example deals with the absorbentpad. Looking at the data broken between two buffers, each could be usedto identify a problem with the absorbent debulker (two repeat), andeleven buffers could be used to identify a problem with the pad formingscreens (eleven repeat).

FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary display of inspection information,tracked on a per station basis, in connection with the exampleillustrated in FIG. 20. In the example of FIG. 21, the followinginformation is displayed for a sample set of fifty products produced andinspected: (1) the drive side (DS) and operator side (OS) average sidepanel skew and skew variance, correlated by application station; (2) thedrive side and operator side average and standard deviation calculationsof measured panel placement in the machine direction relative to thepad, correlated by application station; and (3) the number of missingside panels (both drive side and operator side) detected during thesample set correlated by applicator station.

It should be understood that the per station information can also bestored in a database (indicated generally in FIG. 20 by reference 2112)so that historical relationships can be developed. For example,relationships can be assessed between the per station information andwaste/delay data, raw material data, process setting data, and/orquality data.

The methods and systems disclosed herein for tracking per stationinformation are applicable to a wide range of multiple repeatapplication devices, apart from the above-described six station device.For example, a multiple repeat screen applicator (e.g., an eleven repeatdevice) can be used in a pad formation process associated withconstructing absorbent disposable articles (e.g., training pants). A tworepeat debulker device may also be used in the pad formation process. Ifper station information is tracked for both of these multiple repeatdevices—the eleven repeat screen applicator and the two repeatdebulker—problems identified by inspection system 2104 can becorrelated/isolated to the particular device and, preferably, to aparticular a station of the isolated device. For instance, if an anomalyis detected in the pad—using inspection system 2104—on one out of elevenproducts (e.g., every eleventh product produced during a productionrun), it is likely that the eleven repeat device is implicated. If,however, an anomaly is detected in every other pad, it is more likelythat the problem can be isolated to the debulker.

It should be appreciated that such isolation capabilities can be used inconnection with the alarming and troubleshooting capabilities discussedelsewhere herein.

Another advantage of the methods and systems disclosed herein is theability to relate data from multiple systems. For example, if inspectionsystem 2104 comprises two or more inspection systems (such as thoseidentified in FIG. 12), comparing measurements from both systems helpsto better isolate problems. Referring to FIG. 12 as well as FIG. 20, inone exemplary embodiment, a first machine vision system 1502 comprises aProduct Assembly Conveyor (“PAC”) linescan inspection system because ituses a vision camera mounted near the conveyor where the product isassembled. In this location, vision system 1502 is positioned to acquireimages of each product being produced before the addition of an outercover assembly. Other vision systems (e.g., 1512 and 1520 in FIG. 12)are positioned at subsequent positions in the manufacturing process.Assume in this example that a position of absorbent assembly 44 isstable when inspected by the PAC linescan vision system (e.g., system1502) but its position is not stable when inspected by a subsequentvision system. A processor (e.g., within information exchange 1110)having the inspection information regarding the position of theabsorbent assembly from the inspection systems can apply a logic filterand determine that because absorbent assembly 44 is stable at the PAClinescan system but not stable in subsequent inspections, the problemcausing the instability is not likely associated with formation ofabsorbent pad assembly 44 (which would be located upstream from the PAClinescan). Conversely, if absorbent assembly 44 is not stable at the PAClinescan inspection system, the logic filter preferably determines thatthe problem causing the instability is probably associated with theformation of absorbent assembly 44. Again, knowledge of such informationcan be used to provide, for example, alarms and troubleshootingindications to an operator. It can also be related to other data sources(e.g., raw material, productivity/waste/delay, quality, process setting,and so on) to identify relationships or potential relationships, such asdata patterns, between manufacturing problems and the other data. Thesepatterns may be identified by an information exchange, an operatorinterface or manually by an operator looking at a display of informationrelating to the patterns and performing calculations.

The ability to relate data from multiple systems (e.g., multipleinspection systems inspecting a product component from differentlocations in the production line) is especially powerful if a cameraassociated with a machine vision system is triggered off of a productcomponent. For example, if the component triggering the camera is whatis not stable (moving around), the image on the vision camera willappear stable—because it is triggered by the unstable component andother components will look as if they are unstable. By using data frommultiple systems, a processor such as information exchange 1110 canisolate which component is unstable.

The system disclosed in FIG. 20 will now be described in terms ofanother operating example involving an information exchange, such asinformation exchange 1110 illustrated and described elsewhere herein. Amultiple repeat application device (e.g., applicator 2102) is configuredfor adding a component part to consecutive composite products (e.g.,refastenable training pants) constructed by the sequential addition ofvarious component parts. A machine vision system associated withinspection system 2104 preferably inspects substantially all compositeproducts produced during a production run (or a sample set thereof) toidentify one or more product (or process) attributes (e.g., side panelskew, absorbent assembly position, and so on) associated with eachinspected product in the sequence. Preferably, inspection system 2104determines a product (or process) attribute parameter corresponding tothe inspected product (or process) attribute and makes that product (orprocess) attribute parameter available over the communication network1124 (or otherwise). Information exchange 1110 collects product (orprocess) attribute parameters associated with the inspected products andbuffers those parameters, as illustrated in FIG. 20 and TABLE 1, so thatthe parameters are correlated by product and by station of the multiplerepeat device.

In one embodiment, information exchange 1110 accumulates sample sets ofcorrelated product (or process) attribute parameters and determines amathematical characteristic (e.g., an indication of variation, anaverage, and/or a standard deviation and so on) of each accumulatedsample set. In a manner similar to that described elsewhere herein, themathematical characteristic can be compared to a target (e.g., a limitor an ideal value or range of values) to determine if a problem exists.For example, in some contexts a high standard deviation may beindicative of a loose belt or a drive system problem.

Further, if information exchange 1110 determines that one of the sixapplicators of applicator 2102 is misplacing a component, an indication(e.g., an alarm or troubleshooting action corresponding to theapplicator in question) can be displayed to an operator on operatorinterface 1118. Alternatively, information exchange 1110 can simply passinformation to another processor (e.g., operator interface 1118) whichcompares the data to a target and determines any display indications topresent on operator interface 1118.

In one embodiment, a data base system (e.g., data storage 2112) isconfigured for storing one or more types of data associated with themanufacturing process. Such manufacturing-related data types include,for example, quality characteristic data (e.g., derived from inspectionsystem 2104 and/or manually measured and entered data), raw materialcharacteristic data associated with the component part added byapplication device 2102, productivity data associated with a particularproduction run (e.g., waste and delay data associated with a workshift), and/or process setting data indicative of machine settings andset points associated with the manufacturing process (e.g., set pointsassociated with device 2102). Such data items of interest are preferablystored in data storage 2112 are logically related to the inspectionparameters provided by inspection system 2104. One way to provide such alogical relationship is to use a date/time stamp procedure. Another oradditional way to provide such a logical relationship is to use specificproduct codes. Other relationship tools are possible. Preferably,information exchange 1110 includes a logic filter for executing datamining functions within such data stored in data storage 2112 toidentify relationships such as data patterns between the inspectionparameters and the manufacturing-related data.

With the benefit of the present disclosure, it will be possible toidentify a number of data relationships of value to a variety ofmanufacturing processes such as high speed web converting processes. Forexample, storing per station inspection information can be stored forhistorical data tracking and reliability analyses, or for predictivemaintenance actions and the like.

Product, Process, and Material Data Mining

FIG. 22 is a block diagram illustrative of one configuration of adatabase system (referred to generally in FIG. 22 by reference 2200)suitable for use in mining data in connection with an information systemsuch as that illustrated in FIG. 4A. As illustrated, the database systemincludes waste/delay/productivity data 1120, raw material data 1122,quality data 1112 (e.g., automatically determined and/or manuallymeasured data), and machine process data 1114. Each of these data typeshas been discussed and described elsewhere herein.Waste/delay/productivity data 1120 and raw material data 1122 areillustrated within a dashed box to reflect that, in one embodiment, suchdata is stored on a common computer system. It should be understood thatthe foregoing data may be stored separately or together. There arecertain advantages to storing such data in a common computer, includinga reduction in the overhead needed to access and transfer such data,which facilitates identifying relationships between the data.

As described above, a variety of product (or process) attributeinformation is gathered from machine sensors during the productmanufacturing process. Again, using the manufacture of refastenabletraining pants (which includes high speed web converting processes) asan example, product (or process) attribute information includes sidepanel cut length, side panel skew, hook machine direction (MD)placement, hook cross direction (CD) placement, fastener overlap,fastener skew, MD fold offset, front panel length, and back panellength. As explained herein, some or all of this information is madeavailable for display to an operator. Such product (or process)attribute information may also be stored for data mining or otheranalytical purposes. For example, such product (or process) attributeinformation can be stored in information exchange 1110 of FIG. 22. Theproduct (or process) attribute information is thereafter linked to oneor more other data sources of interest (e.g., one or more of datasources 1120, 1122, 1112, or 1114).

Advantageously, the foregoing data can be correlated to specificproducts or groups of products. Thus, it is possible to identifyrelationships that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. For example,assume that a particular product (or process) attribute isunsatisfactory for a group of products (perhaps even resulting in theculling of those products). Data mining techniques are used to determineif there is a correlation between the unsatisfactory products and theraw materials used or the process set points and so on. Similar, if aparticular production run resulted in an exceptionally high rate ofquality or productivity, it would be advantageous to identify anycorrelation to the raw material, set points, and so on. It should beunderstood that such data mining techniques include SQL queries used togenerate reports that are correlated in terms of time (e.g.,time-stamped data) and/or product. One or more logic filters can also berun on the data to further automate the data mining process.

FIG. 23 is a logic flow diagram of a method (indicated generally byreference 2300) for correlating product (or process) attributeinformation with other manufacturing related information. Moreparticularly, at block 2302, an inspection system (such as inspectionsystem 1104 having one or more machine vision inspection devices)inspects one or more product (or process) attributes associated with acomposite product (e.g., a disposable absorbent article such as arefastenable child's training pant) being manufactured using a webconverting process during a production run. In one embodiment,substantially all products constructed during the production run areinspected. In other embodiments, inspecting includes inspecting a sampleset of products constructed during the production run.

At block 2304, product (or process) attribute parameters are determinedfor the inspected product (or process) attributes. In one embodiment,the inspection system provides an indication of thereliability/trustworthiness of the product (or process) attributeparameter. For example, and as discussed elsewhere herein, some machinevision inspection systems provide an indication of an inspection failureassociated with the inspection system. Reliability/trustworthinessdeterminations can also be made by systems other than the inspectionsystem. For example, an information exchange associated with the methodcould identify data that is so grossly out of bounds as to beuntrustworthy.

At block 2306, the determined product (or process) attribute parametersare used to populate a product (or process) attribute database. In oneembodiment, such a product (or process) attribute database comprises apart of information exchange 1110 (FIG. 22). It should be understood,however, that the product (or process) attribute database can beelsewhere, including, for example, a portion of quality database 1112and so on.

Apart from (or in addition to) filtering product (or process) attributeparameters on the basis of reliability, one or more embodiments can alsocorrelate such parameters to whether the particular product beinginspected was culled or not culled. For example, one embodiment includesidentifying two population sets within the product (or process)attribute database. A first population set comprises product (orprocess) attribute parameters associated with non-culled products, and asecond population set comprises product (or process) attributeparameters associated with culled products. It should now be appreciatedthat certain data mining activities may focus only on culled products ornon-culled products. For example, it may be desirable to conduct datamining activities associated with non-culled products to identify whatfactors tend to result in “good” production runs. In another embodiment,only data associated with non-culled products is stored in the product(or process) attribute database.

At block 2308, one or more manufacturing databases are populated withmanufacturing parameters associated with the manufacture of thecomposite product. As described above, such manufacturing parametersinclude, for example, raw material data parameters (e.g., those storedin raw material database 1122), quality data parameters (e.g., thosemanually entered and those automatically added to quality database1112), waste/delay/productivity data parameters (e.g., those stored inwaste/delay/productivity database 1120), and/or machine process dataparameters (e.g., data stored in machine process database 1114).

In one embodiment, the data items of interest stored in themanufacturing databases include one or more identifiers for correlatingthe data stored therein with one or more product (or process) attributeparameters stored in the product (or process) attribute database. Forexample, a time-based identifier can be used to identify a time frame(e.g., a time of inspection or a time of manufacture) that may be usedto correlate data in the respective databases. Other examples ofidentifiers that may be used separately or in combination includeevent-based identifiers (e.g., a raw material change, a shift change, agrade change, and so on) and product-based identifiers (e.g., product orlot identifiers).

At block 2310, a logic filter correlates data stored in the product (orprocess) attribute database with data stored in a manufacturingdatabase. As suggested above, such a logic filter may includecorrelating the data of interest on the basis of a particular dataidentifier. In one embodiment, SQL queries perform the logic filteringfunctions.

At block 2312, the logical relationships are identified between thecorrelated data. As explained herein, such relationships include, forexample, relationships between product (or process) attributesdetermined by the inspection system and raw material attributes (e.g.,to identifying raw material contributions to good or bad product (orprocess) attributes). Other relationships include relationships betweenproduct (or process) attributes and process settings/set-ups (e.g., toidentify good run and bad run settings), relationships between product(or process) attributes and waste/delay/productivity results (e.g., toidentify whether a product (or process) attribute problems areresponsible for waste/delay/productivity issues), and relationshipsbetween product (or process) attributes and product quality. Further, inone embodiment, multiple inspection systems are used to identify theproduct (or process) attribute. In such an embodiment, relationshipsbetween product (or process) attribute information from differentinspection systems can be analyzed to identify additional relationships.Such relationships are useful for optimizing raw materials, productdesign, and improving manufacturing processes.

Further, logical relationships identified by the method illustrated inFIG. 23 can be displayed on an operator associated with themanufacturing production line, or can be determined later and used aspart of post-manufacturing data analyses.

It should now be appreciated that the systems and methods disclosedherein result in several distinct advantages over the prior art. Forexample, although camera inspection systems have been used in the past,with the benefit of the present disclosure, it is now possible to takemeasurement data from one or more systems and relate such measurementdata to other systems. Further, analyzing such relationships allows,among other things, improved process and quality control. As explainedabove, information from a raw material database can now be used todetermine and anticipate material interactions to the manufacturingprocesses. Similarly, waste and delay data can be used to provideautomatic grade changes to the process settings. Further, inspectiondata can be used in connection with maintaining and improving automaticregistration control-using a separate registration control system and/ordirectly changing equipment set points. It is also possible to identifyquality data for all products shipped, as opposed to determining qualityonly on the basis of a few samples.

It will be appreciated that details of the foregoing embodiments, givenfor purposes of illustration, are not to be construed as limiting thescope of this invention. Although only a few exemplary embodiments ofthis invention have been described in detail above, those skilled in theart will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in theexemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novelteachings and advantages of this invention. For example, featuresdescribed in relation to one embodiment may be incorporated into anyother embodiment of the invention. Accordingly, all such modificationsare intended to be included within the scope of this invention, which isdefined in the following claims and all equivalents thereto. Further, itis recognized that many embodiments may be conceived that do not achieveall of the advantages of some embodiments, particularly of the preferredembodiments, yet the absence of a particular advantage shall not beconstrued to necessarily mean that such an embodiment is outside thescope of the present invention.

When introducing elements of the present invention or the preferredembodiment(s) thereof, the articles “a”, “an”, “the” and “said” areintended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms“comprising”, “including” and “having” are intended to be inclusive andmean that there may be additional elements other than the listedelements.

As various changes could be made in the above constructions withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention, it is intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

1. A web guiding system for use in connection with a continuousproduction line producing a composite web from first and second webcomponents, said first web component being supplied on a first feedsystem and said second web component being supplied on a second feedsystem, said composite web being supplied to a third feed system after aforming process, the system comprising: a communication network; a firstweb guide for selectively adjusting a position of the first webcomponent on the first feed system prior to the forming process; avision inspection system periodically capturing an image of thecomposite web and detecting in the captured image a placement of thefirst web component relative to the second web component, said visioninspection system providing to the communication network an inspectionparameter indicative of said detected placement; an information exchangesystem obtaining via the communication network a plurality of inspectionparameters, each associated with one of a plurality of captured imagesof the composite web, said information exchange system determining amathematical characteristic of the obtained plurality of inspectionparameters and providing the mathematical characteristic; and a drivesystem associated with the first web guide, said drive system beingresponsive to the provided mathematical characteristic for selectivelycausing the first web guide to adjust the position of the first webcomponent on the first feed system.
 2. A web guiding system as set forthin claim 1 further comprising a second web guide for selectivelyadjusting a position of the second web component on the second feedsystem prior to the forming process, and wherein the drive system isassociated with the second web guide, said drive system being responsiveto the provided mathematical characteristic for selectively causing thesecond web guide to adjust the position of the second web component onthe second feed system.
 3. A system as set forth in claim 2 furthercomprising a logic filter for determining whether the first web guideonly should be selectively adjusted, whether the second web guide onlyshould be selectively adjusted or whether both the first and second webguides should be simultaneously selectively adjusted and wherein thedrive system is responsive to the logic filter to implement thedetermination of the logic filter.
 4. A web guiding system as set forthin claim 2 wherein the first web guide is configured for adjusting theposition of the first web component relative to a first reference point.5. A web guiding system as set forth in claim 4 wherein the second webguide is configured for adjusting the position of the second webcomponent relative to the first reference point.
 6. A web guiding systemas set forth in claim 4 wherein the second web guide is configured foradjusting the position of the second web component relative to a secondreference point.
 7. A web guiding system as set forth in claim 4 whereinthe second web guide is configured for adjusting the position of thesecond web component relative to an amount of adjustment to the positionof the first web component.
 8. A system as set forth in claim 2 wherein:the first web guide further comprises a first edge detector fordetecting a position of an edge of the first web component, said firstweb guide guiding the first web component on the first feed system as afunction of the detected position of the edge of the first webcomponent; and the second web guide further comprises a second edgedetector for detecting a position of an edge of the second webcomponent, said second web guide guiding the second web component on thesecond feed system as a function of the detected position of the edge ofthe second web component.
 9. A system as set forth in claim 8 whereinthe information exchange system triggers a cleaning function associatedwith the first edge detector as a function of the determinedmathematical characteristic.
 10. A system as set forth in claim 8wherein the information exchange system triggers a cleaning functionassociated with the second edge detector as a function of the determinedmathematical characteristic.
 11. A system as set forth in claim 2wherein the first web component comprises a first fastener component andthe second web component comprises a second fastener component, saidfirst and second fastener components being joined together by theforming process to form a fastener, and wherein the vision inspectionsystem is configured for detecting a relative placement of the first andsecond fastener components.
 12. A system as set forth in claim 11wherein the vision inspection system comprises a first camera and asecond camera and the image captured by the vision inspection systemcomprises a composite image created from a first image captured usingthe first camera and a second image captured using the second camera.13. A system as set forth in claim 12 wherein the vision inspectionsystem is configured such that the inspection parameter comprises anumerical value being indicative of a relative placement of the firstand second fastener components.
 14. A web guiding system as set forth inclaim 1 wherein the drive system compares the mathematicalcharacteristic to a target, said drive system causing the first webguide to adjust the position of the first web component on the firstfeed system as a function of a difference between the mathematicalcharacteristic and the target.
 15. A system as set forth in claim 14wherein the vision inspection system is configured such that thedetected placement comprises a relative placement of the first andsecond web components and the inspection parameter comprises a numericalvalue indicative of said relative placement and the target comprises anacceptability value.
 16. A system as set forth in claim 14 wherein thedrive system selectively adjusts the third feed system as a function ofa difference between the mathematical characteristic and the target. 17.A system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the drive system selectivelyadjusts the third feed system as a function of a difference between themathematical characteristic and the target.
 18. A system as set forth inclaim 1 wherein the information exchange system is configured such thatthe determined mathematical characteristic comprises at least one of anaverage of the obtained plurality of inspection parameters and astandard deviation of the obtained plurality of inspection parameters.19. A system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the drive system causes thefirst web guide to selectively adjust the web as a function of adifference between the mathematical characteristic and the target.
 20. Asystem as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a monitoring subsystemwhich monitors a parameter of the composite web, which compares themonitored parameter to a preset range and which provides an indicationwhen the monitored parameter is outside the preset range.
 21. A systemas set forth in claim 20 wherein the indication is an alarm or a commandto effect a shutdown of the web guiding system.
 22. A system as setforth in claim 1 wherein the inspection system detects the relativeplacement of first and second components and of second and thirdcomponents and wherein the information exchange system infers therelative placement of the first and third components from the relativeplacement of first and second components and from the relative placementof second and third components and wherein the information exchangesystem uses the inferred relative placement of the first and thirdcomponents for guiding the first or third components.
 23. A system asset forth in claim 1 wherein the continuous production product lineproduces the composite web along a path, wherein the drive system causesthe first web guide to adjust the position of the web at a particularpoint along the path, wherein the vision inspection system captures animage at a particular point along the path which is downstream from theparticular point along the path at which the drive system adjusts theposition of the feed system and wherein the drive system adjusts theposition of the feed system in response to the captured image.
 24. Asystem as set forth in claim 1 wherein the continuous production productline produces the composite web along a path and wherein the producedcomposite web is provided to a downstream process.
 25. A system as setforth in claim 24 wherein the drive system causes the first web guide toadjust the position of the web at a particular point along the path,wherein the vision inspection system captures an image relating to aparameter of the downstream process system and wherein the drive systemadjusts the position of the feed system in response to the capturedimage.
 26. A system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the continuousproduction product line produces the composite web along a path, whereinthe drive system causes the first web guide to adjust the position ofthe web at a particular point along the path, wherein the visioninspection system captures an image at a particular point along the pathwhich is upstream of the particular point along the path at which thedrive system adjusts the position of the feed system and wherein thedrive system adjusts the position of the feed system in response to thecaptured image.
 27. A system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said drivesystem selectively adjusts the position of the feed system as a functionof a predictive information correlated to the mathematicalcharacteristic and the target.
 28. A system as set forth in claim 1wherein the drive system selectively adjusts the first web guide byreference to a reference point comprising one or more of the following:a fixed point; a reference point associated with the first web componentbeing guided and/or a reference point associated with the second webcomponent being guided.
 29. A web guiding method, suitable for use inconnection with a production line producing a composite web formed froma first web component combined with a second web component, said firstweb component being supplied on a first feed system and said second webcomponent being supplied on a second feed system, said composite webbeing supplied on a third feed system after a composition process forcombining said first and second web components, the method comprising:controlling with a first web guide a position of the first web componenton the first feed system to maintain said first web componentsubstantially at a desired position on the first feed system;controlling with a second web guide a position of the second webcomponent on the second feed system to maintain said second webcomponent substantially at a desired position on the second feed system;capturing an image of the composite web formed from the first and secondweb components; detecting in the captured image a placement of the firstweb component relative to the second web component; providing aninspection parameter indicative of said detected relative placement;obtaining a plurality of inspection parameters, each associated with oneof a plurality of captured images of the composite web; determining amathematical characteristic of the obtained plurality of inspectionparameters; comparing the determined mathematical characteristic to atarget; and selectively adjusting a position of the first web guide as afunction of a difference between the mathematical characteristic and thetarget.
 30. A method as set forth in claim 29 further comprisingselectively adjusting a position of the second web guide as a functionof a difference between the mathematical characteristic and the target.31. A method as set forth in claim 29 wherein determining themathematical characteristic comprises determining an average of theobtained plurality of inspection parameters.
 32. A method as set forthin claim 29 wherein determining the mathematical characteristiccomprises determining a standard deviation of the obtained plurality ofinspection parameters.
 33. A method as set forth in claim 29 wherein thecomposition process joins the first and second web components in anoverlapping relationship, and wherein detecting in the captured imagethe placement of the first web component relative to the second webcomponent comprises detecting an amount of overlap between the first webcomponent and the second web component and wherein the inspectionparameter indicates said amount of overlap.
 34. A method as set forth inclaim 29 further comprising initiating a cleaning function associatedwith the first web guide as a function of the determined mathematicalcharacteristic.
 35. A method as set forth in claim 29 further comprisinginitiating a cleaning function associated with the second web guide as afunction of the determined mathematical characteristic.
 36. A method asset forth in claim 29 wherein the first and second components arecombined by a joining process resulting in an overlapping relationshipbetween the first and second components, and wherein detecting in thecaptured image the placement of the first web component relative to thesecond web component comprises detecting an amount of overlap betweenthe first web component and the second web component and wherein theinspection parameter indicates said amount of overlap.
 37. A method asset forth in claim 36 wherein the mathematical characteristic comprisesan assessment of variability of the obtained plurality of inspectionparameters and wherein comparing the mathematical characteristic to thetarget comprises comparing the assessment of variability to anacceptability value associated with the amount of overlap such that ifthe assessment of variability is greater than the acceptability valuethe drive set point is not adjusted.
 38. A method as set forth in claim29 further comprising selectively determining whether the first webcomponent only should be selectively adjusted, whether the second webcomponent only should be selectively adjusted or whether both the firstand second web components should be simultaneously selectively adjustedand implementing the selective determination.